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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22385347">Relic: A map that leads to nowhere</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soggychan/pseuds/Soggychan'>Soggychan</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU with magic and whatnot, Aged Up Slightly, All of the μ's girls and Aqours girls will be there, But most of them will be in kinda minor roles, F/F, Honoka just really likes Riko, Probably will be crossposted to ff, Some characters might be super ooc, There will be characters from tons of series, lots of future violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 01:53:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>22,464</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22385347</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soggychan/pseuds/Soggychan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kousaka Honoka is a travelling cartographer that maps out whatever she thinks will sell. While mapping out the Cerstain River, she runs into a beautiful girl who asks for her help. And who is Honoka to turn her down? This girl introduces herself as Sakurauchi Riko and reveals that she is a Relic, a human weapon used to wage war, that escaped from a neighboring country. Honoka finds herself unusually attached to this girl but who came blame her? Right...?</p><p>Even though it's dangerous, Honoka decides that she wants to help this girl. But when two different nations start searching for her, a great mage gets pissed at her, and a potential world-threatening disaster is looming before her, Honoka finds herself way in over her head. With the world on the edge of its seat, their story begins.</p><p>"Would you... die for me?"</p><p>"If being by your side for just one more second kills me, then I'm fine killing myself."</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kousaka Honoka/Sakurauchi Riko, Sonoda Umi/Takami Chika</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I forget if I mention it in the story, but Honoka is 18 in this story and Riko is 17. It may get mentioned in a later chapter anyways, but just for your reference. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“A bright day! Clear skies! A cool breeze! Today! Today I’ll finish mapping Cerstain River!” Kousaka Honoka fist pumped the air, yelling out to nowhere from the middle of her makeshift campsite. That ‘campsite’ literally only consisted of a bedroll and a fire that had burned out during the night. She quickly rolled up her bedroll and attached it to the bottom of her pack, pulled the pack on her shoulders and nodded to herself.</p><p>With her luck, right when she had decided to map the geographical changes due to mudslides around Cerstain River, it had rained five days in a row, flooding the river and preventing her from her self-given mission. Well, it was self-given, but she had plenty of people waiting for a new map of the Cerstain River and base of Mount Arghen area which the river flowed near to. But now was the day she would finally do it. After camping in the middle of the forest, shew as ready to return to town, but mapping the entire area would be a two-day process at the least, so she would have to deal with a bit more wilderness time.</p><p>It wasn’t that she minded too much. Her job as a cartographer made her spend many days out in the wilderness while she mapped areas out. But her dedication was what had built her reputation as one of the most trusted and skilled cartographers of the age. Despite working completely alone, she mapped some of the most dangerous places on the continent and had even been paid by royal families for her services. To say the least, she was proud of her work.</p><p>“Alright…” Honoka reached the edge of where she had explored when the rain had started so she stopped daydreaming and actually examined the landscape around her. It wasn’t long before she came upon the river itself which had seen little change. Good. She nodded at that and followed it upstream, in the direction of the mountain.</p><p>As she finally reached the base of the mountain where the river turned west, she saw the real challenge. The paths along Mount Arghen had been meticulously mapped but many of the ones along this side of the mountain were unusable now due to deposited mud and rocks. Honoka took her time picking a path up to a ledge she had spotted and managed to find a way that was stable enough for her to climb. Once she sat on that ledge, she set her pack down and took out a large piece of parchment, a quill, and a half-full inkwell which she sat next to her.</p><p>The ledge provided a great view of the flow of the river southward and the area around it. Trees were too thick in some areas to get a good view so she would have to follow the river south after she was done with the area around the mountain base. But for now, this spot would be fine. She dipped her quill into the ink and got started.</p><p>First, she mapped how the old paths had changed, detailing areas that looked more dangerous that she could see from there. The mudslides had created some makeshift paths of their own but none of them seemed to travel too far up the mountain. For now, until people made a path, fully climbing the mountain would be next to impossible unless they went further east where mudslides had not occurred. Second, she drew out the base and gave special attention to spots that used to be popular for camping and whether they were still available or not. Many of them would be unusable until people shoveled away the mud or the mud naturally got washed away. It made her a little sad to think about, but it was also what made cartography so fun to her.</p><p>The world was always changing, and she would be the first to see many of these changes and definitely be the first to map them out. A smile spread across her face as she meticulously drew out lines to give an idea of height on the two-dimensional plane.</p><p>Minutes turned to hours and soon enough the sun was setting in the distance. Honoka stretched and checked her ink. She nodded, satisfied that she would have enough to finish this project, but she noted to buy some more when she headed back to town and then to the capital. Today’s part was finished: a complete mapping of the base of the mountain and the river around it, including damage done to popular spots. She even took some separate notes on the flora and fauna she had seen while on her perch.</p><p>After making sure the ink was sufficiently dried, she rolled the map up and stuck it in a wooden tube from her pack before starting her trek back down the mountain. It was only when she was nearing the bottom did her growling stomach remind her that all she had eaten was some salted meat when she had first woken up. She had been so absorbed in mapping that the thought of food hadn’t even crossed her mind.</p><p>Once she finally made it to the bottom, she explored her pack to see what food she had brought along. Some bread that should still be good, she examined it for mold and determined that it was in fact still edible. Some honey for said bread which she nodded in thanks to a friend of hers who had given it to her as a bonus for mapping out a part of the Sycllia Forest a couple of weeks ago. Although bread with honey wasn’t the best dinner, she settled for it and sat down near the river. The sound of flowing water calmed her as she carefully spread honey on a piece of bread and devoured it. It was a lot better than she thought it would be and quickly devoured the remainder of the bread and made a decent dent in the honey.</p><p>“Ahhhh~ that was good!” She would definitely have to thank Yayoi for the honey the next time she saw her and maybe pick up some more. “Well, camping next to the river isn’t a good idea. If my maps get ruined partway through, I’ll never forgive myself.” Honoka mumbled to herself as she packed up the honey and started downstream, looking into the forest for a good camping spot. She could use the one she had before, but it was out of the way for the area she would be mapping tomorrow so she would rather find somewhere closer…</p><p>After a bit of searching, the sun was well below the horizon. She lifted her pack above her shoulders and decided to search on the other side of the river. Luckily, it wasn’t too deep, and she was able to make it across by slowly trudging through, keeping her pack and everything safe from a watery demise. She wandered into the forest and soon found a good spot between three large trees. She rested her pack against one of them and laid out her bedroll.</p><p>“Ah…” She should wash off after sitting in the sun all day. It wasn’t particularly uncomfortable yet, but she could still see sweat glistening on her skin from earlier so she took a towel that was more like a large rag and headed off for the river, leaving her stuff in the darkness, figuring it was better than lighting a fire to tell any passing robbers where her stuff was unattended.</p><p>She slipped out of her travel gear which included a heavy grey sleeveless jacket with several pockets, a black shirt made from some foreign material along with a set of chainmail she had received from a noble family for her mapping in the past, and her tough pants which were made for climbing. She found a spot where a rock would prevent her from being pulled away, though the water in that area was relatively calm, far from what you could call rapids at least. Honoka sat herself next to that rock and sighed in satisfaction as all but her head and neck sunk below the cool water.</p><p>“Heaven~” Honoka was glad she had taken a job to map over near a river for once. When she was in Sycllia Forest, she had to go without a bath for several days which always made her feel gross. But when she could freely take baths, it was a gift…</p><p>By the time she got out, it was pitch black, but she had a good memory of the land, a gift that definitely helped with her cartography. She found her way back with no problem and was glad to find all of her stuff untouched. Now she did light a small fire, just enough to keep warm and provide enough light to see her map which she took out once again and examined. She nodded and took the opportunity to sketch the area she had just been through, though not much of it had changed significantly enough to be marked. While she was at it, she took the opportunity to draw in the compass rose and a legend.</p><p>She took the time to draw in the country name as well: Alcorde. The Kingdom of Alcorde, but she left out of the ‘kingdom’ part as she always did. Named after some ancient hero or so the legends went, the country had been around for so long that nobody really remembered which came first, the kingdom or the legend. She was near the north and east borders. Not far past Mount Arghen laid Fhalren, a friendly nation that had prospered from trading with Alcorde and the surrounding country. They were considered the country of trade, in fact, and merchants would travel from far and wide to see the markets there. Honoka had always wanted to map it out.</p><p>To the east of Alcorde laid Coulchen, a nation that had historically tried to invade Alcorde on multiple occasions, sparking some of the bloodiest wars the continent of Shenoure had ever seen. One of those wars, arguably the bloodiest, had ended only twenty years prior. It was even knows as the Great War. Despite being at peace, there was still some tension between the two countries, and both still had their militaries good and stockpiled in case of an attack. The borders were highly secure and any main route in and out of either country into the other was guarded by a checkpoint full of soldiers.</p><p>Honoka had seen those checkpoints herself when mapping part of the eastern border. Well, as long as no war broke out, she would be fine. Even if a war did break out, she figured she might be able to avoid combat by working as a mapper for the military. They would need up to date maps at all times, right? Though she would rather her current lifestyle where nobody had to die for her to make a living.</p><p>Thinking about that was pointless when she was out here anyways, so she waited for the ink to dry and placed the map carefully into the tube before calling it a night. She tucked herself into her bedroll and mentally mapped out a route she could take tomorrow to ensure that she would be able to map everything without spending another night in the forest. Well, she would still have to camp out one more night regardless because there was no way she could make the trip back to town in the night. Not because she couldn’t find her way, but because bandits like to prowl the roads at night along with dangerous creatures. She would camp out a ways off the road during the night and make her way back to town before noon the following day. She nodded at her plan and finally let the exhaustion of the day overtake her.</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>“Help! Somebody!”</p><p>Honoka’s eyes snapped open and she was out of her bedroll in record time. She reached into her pack and took out a dagger that had seen barely any use since she had been travelling but it was the only weapon she carried. Crouching low and listening, she heard it again, the distinctive yell of “Help! Please!” Honoka noted her current position and thought about the direction of the voice then back to her map. It was coming from the east, along the base of the mountain somewhere, likely near the area she had mapped earlier in the day.</p><p>The issue was that it was still pitch-black out. Honoka would have to rely on her memory to move quite a distance and then back to retrieve her stuff later. Well, it’s not like she had a choice. She wasn’t just going to abandon somebody that needed help. She dashed into the woods, shoving her way through bushes and branches, following the sound of voice. In the further distance she could hear a group of men yelling, heading in her direction. She burst out of the forest in front of the base of the mountain and almost collided with a figure.</p><p>“Ah!”</p><p>The figure fell back and Honoka almost screamed as well but she lost her voice when she saw the figure in the dim moonlight. Beautiful long red hair that glistened in the moonlight, enchanting. Honoka was barely able to draw her eyes away from it, but she instantly wished she had drawn her eyes away sooner because when she did, her eyes met pure amber and her heart almost leapt through her chest. She sucked in her breath and failed to let it out, her eyes still locked onto the amber eyes of the girl in front of her. The only thing that finally snapped her out of it and let her breathe again was the girl grabbing onto her arm.</p><p>“P-Please! Help me!” The angelic voice made Honoka’s heart flutter and she finally got a good look at the rest of the girl. A long lavender dress flowed in the breeze and, judging from the material and from the pearl necklace adorning that beautiful, alluring… Honoka paused and shook her head. This girl was in trouble, stop staring at her. First, help her.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” She finally asked though from the sound of voices growing closer and the sound of horses trotting, she could assume this girl was being chased so she said as much. “You’re being chased, right? I assume those guys aren’t your friends.”</p><p>She nodded vigorously. “Please. I swear, I’ll explain everything. Just don’t let them find me.” Sweat was pouring down the girl’s face, she must have run quite a distance, Honoka thought. The desperation in her eyes made her heart ache, she looked like she was on the verge of collapsing into a panic attack. Pissing off some random guys wasn’t her style, but she would risk it for this girl. Honoka knew that if she left that girl alone, her heart would feel this way for the rest of her life.</p><p>So, she held out her hand.</p><p>The redhead stared at it, almost in disbelief before she looked up in the confident smile of Kousaka Honoka. She returned that smile and took the hand and Honoka immediately took off back into the forest. Even in her rush, she had mentally mapped out the route she took so she could get back to her campsite as quickly as possible. When they got there, she simply put a finger to her lips and stomped out the glowing remains of the fire. She packed up her bedroll and grabbed her pack.</p><p>Grabbing the redhead’s hand once again, she ran to the river and motioned for her to hold her dress up while they crossed. They headed back and Honoka found the way she had climbed up the mountain the first time. It was little more difficult to get the redhead up with her, but they managed. When they sat back against the mountain, it would be impossible to see them from below. Looking up, you would just see the ledge itself. So Honoka thought it was perfect.</p><p>They remained silent until they heard the voices of the men yelling underneath them as they turned to follow along the river to the south. The redhead covered her mouth as her breathing picked up and Honoka wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close and whispering assurances in as low a voice as possible. The men clearly didn’t hear them, and their voices soon faded into the distance.</p><p>Honoka wasn’t sure how long they sat there in silence, but just when she was going to speak up, she felt something bump her shoulder. She looked to her side and saw that beautiful red hair. The girl was leaning against her shoulder and, judging from the quiet even breathing she could hear, she had fallen asleep. Honoka sighed. The girl must have been exhausted from running from those men. Who knows how long she had been running before running into the ginger? Honoka just leaned back against her pack, making sure that the redhead remained against her shoulder instead of using the mountain as a pillow.</p><p>There was a lot to think about, like what the hell she had just gotten herself into and who this mystery beauty was, but nothing looked like it was going to be resolved that night. She managed to reach into her pack with disturbing the girl and pulled out one of her spare shirts. It wasn’t much but she used it as a makeshift cover for the redhead. Honoka couldn’t help but smile at how peacefully the girl was now sleeping. It was a stark contrast to the panicked state she had been in when she had asked for help. Honoka sighed and stared up at the night sky.</p><p>Well, all of these problems could wait until tomorrow.</p><p>“Good night.” Honoka closed her eyes and let the warmth of the girl help lull her into sleep.</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>Honoka’s internal clock was definitely set to wake her just after dawn everyday and it didn’t pick this day to screw up. She slowly opened her eyes to see just a bit of light shining over the world. After her night escapade, she was still tired, but with her internal clock the way it was, going to sleep again would prove useless. She almost let out a loud yawn but covered her mouth when she felt something shift against her and she turned to see the redhead from the night before still sleeping peacefully against her shoulder and she felt a smile creep onto her face.</p><p>She didn’t have the heart to wake her from such a peaceful sleep, especially since she probably needed it after the girl’s eventful night. Somehow, she managed to slide her pack to the side and moved the redhead gently so that she was resting against it instead of her shoulder. Honoka stood and stretched, then reached back into her pack, careful not to shake it with her rummaging and took out her partially finished map along with her quill and inkwell. Might as well work on it while she waited for the girl to wake up. Digging around for more food, she was happy to find that she was, in fact, not out of bread. She had two rolls that she had picked up a week ago… or something like that. Well, with the honey, she could barely even tell that the bread was on the precipice of becoming stale.</p><p>After the roll, she brought her parchment into her lap and began working on her map. From her memory of last night, she mapped out the area she had been in. At the least, if anything came from that escapade, it would be that she saved time on this map. As she was putting the finishing touches on what she had seen the night before, she heard a quiet, “Mm…,” behind her and turned to see the redhead sitting up and rubbing her eyes. Honoka smiled and turned back to her map, examining her handiwork before speaking.</p><p>“Finally awake, sleepyhead?” She had only been working on her map for maybe an hour so, all considered, she had still woken up pretty early. The girl looked at her in confusion and Honoka turned and tilted her own head as if to ask what was wrong. Then the girl sighed in relief and slumped down. “A-Are you okay?” Honoka reached one hand towards her and the girl grabbed it with both of hers. Her hands were shaking Honoka realized and she gently returned the grip.</p><p>“Thank you… Thank you so much…” The girl was crying, her shoulders shaking with each sob. And with each sob, Honoka felt her heart tear in two. The last thing she wanted was to see this girl cry, it hurt too much.</p><p>“Don’t cry.” She scooted a bit closer, making sure that her map-in-progress didn’t go flying from her lap and reached out with her other hand to rub the girl’s head. “It’s okay. Everything’s okay now. You’re safe.” It took a bit for the girl to calm down but when she finally did, Honoka took out the last roll she had saved and handed it to her along with the honey. “It’s not much, but it’s something to fill you up for now. I might be able to search for some edible plants later, but we’re a decent bit out from the nearest town so shopping for food isn’t exactly an option.”</p><p>“N-Not at all. I’m grateful. Thank you very much… um…” She tilted her head and Honoka gave her a smile.</p><p>“Kousaka Honoka at your service. And you?”</p><p>The redhead seemed to hesitate, her grip on the roll tightening. She fidgeted, managing to avoid Honoka’s eyes even when the ginger tried to look into the amber orbs again.</p><p>“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I won’t hold it against you or anything.” Honoka tried to laugh but it came out as awkward and insincere. The redhead shook her head quickly and let out a shaky breath.</p><p>“I-It’s not… I… You saved me so… the least I can do is give you my name.” She cleared her throat and sat up straight, a gentle smile caressing her lips. “My name is Sakurauchi Riko. Though it may have been nice to meet under more favourable circumstances, I am grateful that you saved me. It is my pleasure, Kousaka-san.”</p><p>Honoka’s heart leapt in her chest again when she saw that smile. It was so beautiful, and it fit her so much better than the panicked look from before or even the peaceful sleeping face from just earlier and last night. Honoka turned her head around to hide the heat that was rising towards her face.</p><p>“A-Ahaha. Just Honoka is fine. Formality really isn’t my thing, so it’s easier like this.” She nodded, glad she had spoken instead of saying silent. Even though her heart was still pounding in her chest, she dared to look back at Riko.</p><p>“I see. Then Riko is fine as well. I don’t want to feel like we’re of two different stations.” Another beautiful smile and holy shit Honoka didn’t how her heart was managing to stay in her chest or how her face wasn’t overheating. This girl was a pure beauty. She had never felt this from seeing somebody smile and she had seen her fair share of people in her travels. What the hell was wrong with her? Or more like what was with this girl that made her feel like that?</p><p>Honoka just opted to nod and turn back to her map, hoping that the heat in her face would fade with time. Riko started to eat her roll but leaned forward to see what was in the ginger’s lap.<br/>
“A map? Are you travelling?”</p><p>“Eh? Oh.” Honoka lifted up her quill to show her. “I’m a cartographer. There have been some major mudslides in this area recently so I’m here to map out the changes. People always want up to date information, you know?” Riko nodded and leaned closer causing Honoka’s heart to stop for a second before starting up at double speed.<br/>
“You’re an amazing artist, Kou-, ah, Honoka. Your maps must be very popular.”</p><p>Honoka couldn’t help but giggle dumbly at the comment, just happy that the girl had given the compliment at all, but she snapped out of it quickly and smiled. “Thank you. I don’t know about very popular, but I’ve been drawing maps with my grandfather since I was a child. After he passed away and I was on my own, I took up cartography as an actual trade. That was a few years ago and I’ve been doing it as a job ever since.”</p><p>Riko seemed hesitant to push the subject, but she still spoke up. “What… What about your parents?”</p><p>Honoka almost laughed at the obvious hesitation, but she was glad the girl was trying to be so sensitive about the subject. She turned her head back to the map and gently ran her fingers along the side. “They passed away when right after I was born in one of those post-war skirmishes along the border.” Honoka shrugged. “I guess it doesn’t make me too sad since I never knew them, but they were still my parents, you know? Anyways, I was raised by my grandfather. I’m glad I was raised by him though. If it wasn’t for him, I probably wouldn’t be a cartographer.”</p><p>Riko nodded slowly but stayed silent otherwise, opting to finish her roll instead. Honoka penned in a few details that she thought were lacking from her map as she looked over the scenery in front of her once again. The redhead watched her with intrigue and Honoka smiled the whole time until she realized something. She had just told this girl a whole lot about herself but still knew nothing about her except for her name.</p><p>“So, last night you said you would explain your situation.” When she spoke, the girl jumped and shrunk back a bit. “Honestly, I don’t mind if you don’t want to talk about it. But it would be nice to know exactly what I’m getting myself into. And if you still need help, it’ll help me to help you.”</p><p>Riko nodded but still seemed a bit reluctant. She moved some of her hair behind her eat and pulled the makeshift sheet back over her. “Um… I…” She pulled her knees up and swallowed, still doing her best to look away from Honoka. “I don’t think… you’ll want to help me.” She tried to keep her voice measured, but the ginger could hear it shaking.</p><p>She wanted to say that she wouldn’t leave the girl alone, but she stopped herself. That feeling in her chest was tugging at her, tugging her toward the girl. There was no way she could leave her now. For some reason, she wanted to protect this girl. It was weird to think about, but it was even weirder to consider saying it out loud. What would she say anyways? Honoka thought about it for a second before finally letting out a long sigh. She rolled up her map and slid it back into the tube.</p><p>“Listen, Riko. I’ll try my best to help you, alright? I’m just a cartographer so I might not even be able to do anything. But I would definitely like to try.” She scooted back a bit and turned to face the redhead, a gentle smile on her face. “So… at least tell me what’s wrong, okay? Don’t I deserve to know at least that much?” She expected the redhead to remain silent but Riko nodded and took a deep breath.</p><p>“I… um… I’m on the run. Like you probably already figured. I’m… I’m from Coulchen. But now I’m a fugitive.” She tightened her grip around her legs and looked into the ginger’s eyes as if using the pools of blue to brace herself, to use as a foothold. “No. That’s not exactly true. I was never free to begin with. I’m… a Relic.”</p><p>A Relic… Honoka shook her head in disbelief. Of course she had heard of them. The reason the Great War had been so bloody was because both Alcorde and Coulchen had used Relics. Relics were ancient weapons that were placed inside humans long ago. Whatever magic tied them to humans had done so permanently. When a person who holds a Relic dies, the Relic finds its way into another. Those who hold Relics are considered weapons themselves instead of humans, so everybody just ends up referring to the people themselves as Relics as well. Needless to say, they’re coveted by countries for their power in war.</p><p>Hearing that from this girl kind of pissed Honoka off. She didn’t like the idea of Riko being treated like an object to be traded around. Riko stared at her, wordlessly waiting for a response, a reaction, anything. Of course, this knowledge changed nothing of how the ginger thought of her. How could it? Just because Riko had a Relic inside of her didn’t change who she was… though Honoka didn’t have a solid grasp of who exactly she was yet. But what she did know is that Riko was just a scared girl.</p><p>“I see.” She offered, not quite sure what else to say.</p><p>“Mm… Obviously they would be angry if one of their Relics escaped, right? So, they sent those men after me. If it wasn’t for you, I probably wouldn’t have made it this far. So… thank you again, Honoka.”</p><p>Honoka just nodded slowly before standing up and stretching. She packed up her map and supplies and swung her pack onto her shoulders before offering Riko her hand to help her stand. The redhead took that hand and Honoka led them back down the path that had gotten them up there. She stopped when they reached the bank of the river. Honoka would go south and map out the rest of the area before heading back, but what would this girl do?</p><p>She turned towards her. “What do you want to do, Riko? I believe you. That you’re a Relic and that you escaped from Coulchen. But what now? Did you have a plan? A place where you wanted to go?”</p><p>Riko nodded. “I’ve heard rumors… about the Great Sage. I’ve heard that he can remove Relics from people so… I was going to look for him.”</p><p>“Hmm. Do you have any idea where this ‘Great Sage’ is?” Riko shook her head. “So, do you just plan on aimlessly wandering around? I should warn you, if you attract too much attention to yourself and the King hears that you’re a Relic, he’ll send people after you too. I’m sorry, but Relics are treated the same here as they are in every other country.”</p><p>Riko hung her head low and Honoka felt her heart trying to beat her up for making the girl sad but what she said was true. If Riko just kept asking about this Great Sage, she was bound to attract attention to herself. Not to mention something as big as a Relic escaping would become common knowledge soon enough and it was only a matter of time before those rumors started to mention that she had fled to Alcorde. Then the King really would be sending people out to look for her everywhere. That’s just how powerful Relics were, every country wanted as many as they could get.</p><p>“I… I’ll find my way. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me, Honoka. I will never forget it.” She bowed and moved to walk past the girl.</p><p>Something in Honoka’s brain immediately shouted at her to stop the redhead, to grab her hand, to turn her around and pledge to protect her. Of course she wouldn’t do that though. Riko would probably think she was a weirdo if she did that out of the blue. But she had to stop her. The tugging sensation in her chest was becoming worse and she wanted nothing more than to speak out, to shout out for her to wait but then what? Then…</p><p>“Wait!” Riko stopped and turned to regard the ginger. “Ah, um… A-A girl like you travelling around her by herself? Well… that just wouldn’t sit well with me. Why don’t you come with me? At least until we reach the nearest town. I plan on mapping some more of this area out, but we’ll start heading over there today and then reach the town tomorrow. You’ll be able to get information there, maybe ask around.” Honoka wanted to ask her to stay even beyond that but that would just be… strange to ask. So she held herself back.</p><p>Riko thought about it for a second before finally nodding, that gentle smile returning to make Honoka’s heart flutter again. “Sure. That sounds nice. Then, I’ll be in your care for a bit longer, Honoka.” She bowed deeply and Honoka giggled at the action. This girl was definitely too cute.</p><p>“Likewise.” She gave her own bow, more to teasingly jab at the girl but Riko didn’t seem to notice.</p><p>Honoka spent the next several hours walking around the area with Riko, pointing out various things that had changed because of the mudslides or something else. She pointed out significant areas that people like to have marked on maps. Even if she wasn’t interested in cartography, Riko seemed to enjoy listening to the ginger talk so enthusiastically about the subject but she remained relatively quiet, just occasionally giggling when Honoka got over-enthusiastic about something or commenting briefly on something the ginger pointed out.</p><p>It was some of the most fun Honoka ever had exploring an area. There were times when she had companions that she had spent limited amounts of time with while she was mapping out an area, but she never felt like she did now. Her heart was soaring the entire time, every giggle from Riko making her heart do a flip, every smile from the girl making her smile twice as wide.</p><p>By the time they were settling down for the night, camping in the forest off the road leading back to town, both of them were pretty tired. Honoka had a job to do, however, and she loved that job. As soon as she had made a fire and managed to find some food in her pack for Riko, she went about mapping the area they had explored. If anything, they covered more ground that she had intended.  Riko watched with some intrigue as the ginger carefully ran the quill over the parchment.</p><p>“You really like drawing maps, don’t you?” The question surprised Honoka and she looked up to see Riko smiling at her. “After all, you haven’t stopped smiling since you started. And you laughed and smiled the entire time we were exploring too.”</p><p>
  <i>A big part of that was because of you.</i> Honoka wouldn’t dare to say that out loud.
</p><p>“Mm. I love mapping things out. Exploring an area and then drawing the map of it… it feels like I’m the first one to see new changes. The world is always changing, and I want to be the first one to map those changes. I want to be the first one to map out ill-explored areas. I want to always travel and see more of the world. Well, I say that, but I’ve always lived in Alcorde.”</p><p>“I’m sure the time will come when you can go out and explore. I’m sure there are a lot of people who would love to see your maps.”</p><p>“Hmm, I wonder~” Honoka found herself smiling stupidly again at the compliment and bent back over her map to finish it. It took a while but when she was finally done, she wrote a fancy ‘HK’ at the bottom, a sign that it was indeed a map done by her. She stretched while waiting to make sure the ink dried. “Ahhh, finally done. It feels so good to finish a map.”</p><p>By the time she had finished, it was pure darkness all around them except for the small fire. Riko was yawning every few seconds as well so she figured it was probably time for some well-deserved sleep. Honoka grabbed the bedroll from her pack and tossed it to Riko with a, “Heads up,” and Riko just barely caught it, almost dropping it in the fire.</p><p>“W-Wha? You had two of these?”</p><p>“Huh? No. You sleep in that.”</p><p>“Eh? Where will you sleep then?” Honoka pointed to the ground under her. “I-I can’t let you do that! After all you’ve done for me, anything more would be…” The ginger snickered at how flushed Riko was getting over nothing.</p><p>Honoka plopped herself on her back and looked over at the girl. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve been travelling for years, it won’t be the first time I’ve slept on the ground. Besides, it’s pretty soft, so no worries. Make sure you get some sleep. We have a long walk tomorrow.”</p><p>Riko mumbled some embarrassed words of thanks before laying on the bedroll and climbing inside. Honoka turned on her side, away from Riko and the fire and closed her eyes, hoping that sleep would come quickly but at the same time hoping it would never come. The sooner that sleep came, the sooner they would reach town and the sooner Riko would be out of her life.</p><p>Whether fortunately or not, a few hours passed without the ginger getting a wink of sleep. She debated getting up to check her map again but she would have to relight the fire for that and she didn’t feel like walking around the in the total darkness to gather wood. She let out a sigh but regretted it almost immediately when a soft voice reached her ears.</p><p>“Are you awake?”</p><p>She paused, unsure if she should answer but she finally gave an, “Mm,” in response.</p><p>“You know… I only became a Relic when I was five. I don’t really know how it happened, but it was just like… one day I knew it was there. I told my parents and…” She could hear Riko shuffling in the bedroll and took that second to wonder why the girl was telling her this. Even if she had saved her, Honoka was no more than a stranger to her. Then again, Honoka had spilled quite a bit about herself. Maybe the redhead felt bad about that and decided to talk about herself more. Whatever the case was, Honoka’s thoughts were interrupted when she continued. “My parents… sold me to the King.”</p><p>“Eh? Sold…?”</p><p>“Mm. I was scared, scared of what was inside me. So I told them. And not two days later, guards came and took me away. I learned later that my parents had told the King and asked for money so the King could have me with no struggle.” There was a pause and a shaky breath. “I guess I just… I thought that, in some strange way, I kind of know what it’s like to lose both of your parents. I’ve never seen them since that day. I’ve been locked up for so many years…”</p><p>“…”</p><p>“A-Ah, I’m sorry. This must be weird, hearing all of this from someone you just met. I, um… I just never really had anyone I could freely talk to. The people who brought me food never spoke with me. I… I met a couple other Relics over the years, but encounters were kept brief. Ah, there I go again. I’m sorry. You’re just… easy to talk to. I’m sorry, I should probably be getting to sleep.”</p><p>More shuffling and then silence. Honoka had pulled her jacket up to hide the redness in her cheeks as if Riko would see straight through her back. For some reason, it made her really happy to hear that from her. If she was easy to talk to then that meant the girl had to think of as kind of a friend at least. Honoka nodded to herself before whispering.</p><p>“Thank you. For telling me. I’m glad you feel like you can trust me.”</p><p>She thought Riko must have been asleep by then but she heard a giggle from the bedroll and snorted. No more words were exchanged through the night though and Honoka eventually felt the pull of sleep taking her and she did nothing to resist it.</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>The two woke bright and early, Honoka packing away all of her stuff before setting back out to the road and towards town. The walk would be a few hours, so they passed the time with some casual conversation. Honoka would point out any relatively significant landmarks that they passed and Riko would get excited whenever a wild animal would run through the road and quickly and enthusiastically point it out to the ginger who would just nod and laugh.</p><p>“You haven’t seen many animals, have you, Riko?”</p><p>“Huh? Ah, um. I rarely left the city as a child and then I was locked away until just recently so… I never really got the chance to experience a normal life. I don’t know that much outside of my hometown and the room I was kept in.” Honoka nodded slowly, guilt building up in her chest for asking such a stupid question.</p><p>“Ah, look you can see the town up ahead!” She pointed over the crest of a hill quite a distance from them. They could just barely see the tips of some buildings poking over it.</p><p>They increased their walking speed until they finally reached it. It wasn’t anything special, just an ordinary town. For the area it was decently large and there were certainly quite a number of people milling about. It even had its own market which was bustling with the voices of merchants and customers trying to barter.</p><p>“Welcome to Quensaille!” Honoka declared, holding out her arms. “It’s a popular town for hunters in northern areas of Alcorde to trade. And… Riko?”</p><p>Riko stared wide eyed at the town, her head darting from stall to building to person. “T-This place is so big! There are so many people!”</p><p>“Haha, how about I give you a tour then?” Riko locked her amber eyes that practically glowed with excitement onto Honoka and nodded. “Then, let’s go!”</p><p>Even though Honoka had thought they might separate almost immediately after arriving, they spent the better portion of two hours wandering around town. Honoka treated the redhead to some sweets from some of her favourite stalls and let her browse through some foreign goods. She showed her the church which was huge for that size of a town. They walked the outskirts and Riko excitedly took in the free archery training range for hunters along with a training ground for the town soldiers.</p><p>They ended their walk by Honoka offering to get them a bite to eat since they had only eaten scraps that morning and a few sweets from stalls. Honoka pushed open the door to the Mayberry Pub and led Riko over to a table in the corner, just in case they had to talk about any… sensitive information. The last thing she needed was to be the reason Riko was outed as a Relic.</p><p>A pretty bluenette that looked a bit younger than the two walked over with a cheery smile on her face. “If it isn’t Honoka. Finally back from your trip to the Cerstain? We were afraid you might have died in the flooding out there.”</p><p>“Ahaha, come on, Aoi-chan, don’t say that, I really might die one day, you know. But yeah, I’m fine. The flooding just made the trip take way longer, but I got it all done. Ah, this is Riko, a new friend of mine. I’m showing her around town. Riko, this is my friend, Aoi-chan. She helps run this pub with her cousin. Is Ichigo-chan in today?”</p><p>“Kiriya Aoi at your service! And yeah, she’s in the back cooking since our cook took a vacation.”</p><p>Riko gave a polite bow and smile. “My name is…” Riko suddenly froze up and Honoka took a little too long to realize. Her last name! Of course she couldn’t say her last name! If she gave her real name, she would be tracked down in no time! “Riko…” She left it at that and looked down with her face flushed in embarrassment once again.</p><p>Honoka gave an awkward laugh before Aoi could say anything. “Sorry, she’s a little shy around new people. Anyways, can you get me my usual? And another one for her. Put them both on my bill.”<br/>
“Coming right up!”</p><p>“Y-You don’t have to buy me more food!” Riko said, shifting awkwardly in her seat.</p><p>“You have money?” Riko just averted her eyes. “That’s what I thought. Listen, Riko. I’m a homeless travelling cartographer. My expenses are pretty small all considered. I have more money than I know what to do with. So, don’t worry about it, okay?” The redhead still seemed uncomfortable with the idea, but she nodded anyways.</p><p>Aoi eventually brought out their food. It was just some simple gamey meat with sauce and some vegetables on the side. It was a quick meal that Honoka would often eat before taking off to wherever her next job took her. However, Riko was digging into it as if it was most delicious meal she had ever tasted.</p><p>“It’s so juicy! And the seasoning is perfect! I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve had such a good meal.”</p><p>Honoka couldn’t help but give a wide smile. Eating with Riko made her own meal taste a lot better and watching how much the girl enjoyed her meal kept a smile on Honoka’s face the entire time. The thought of asking the girl to accompany her or maybe the other way around popped into her head again but there were several problems with that. Even if she did, how would she keep her job? Riko had no money and Honoka had some saved up, but how would she take jobs if she was following the redhead around everywhere?</p><p>Riko must have noticed the ginger’s distress because she spoke up with some concern in her voice. “Honoka? Is something wrong?” Honoka snapped out of her thoughts and waved her hands in front of her.</p><p>“N-Nothing! I was just thinking I should probably go visit my contact here to make some copies of the map.”</p><p>“Contact?”</p><p>“Ah, yeah. It’s pretty rare to have printing presses, but you have to know somebody who does, or copies of your maps can’t be made. It’s pretty expensive and takes a while but it works. It’s either that or I would have to make copies by hand.”</p><p>“Oh, I see. Sounds like hard work.”</p><p>Honoka nodded and continued to explain some of the economics around the issue but they were done eating before she knew it and when they exited the pub, her heart dropped. She knew it was probably time. And her fears were realized when Riko turned to her, giving her small bow and smile like always.</p><p>“Once again, thank you for everything you’ve done for me, Honoka. I will never forget what I owe you. I hope we can meet again in the future.”</p><p>Once again, everything in her body screamed for her to take a step forward, to somehow convince the girl to come with her or to abandon everything and follow the girl. But she didn’t.<br/>
“Mm. It may have been short, but I really enjoyed our time together. I definitely hope we see each other again.”</p><p>Her heart was torn in two from her own words. Riko gave her last words of farewell and walked off. And that was it. Honoka stared at the girl’s back until she disappeared into the crowded street. Her heart sunk further if that was even possible. Why did she let her go? Why? Regret filled her stomach and she found herself running into that crowd, yelling Riko’s name, but it would be impossible for the girl to hear her over all the noise. She desperately searched for the girl but never saw any sign of her even when she asked around.</p><p>Sakurauchi Riko was gone. Honoka had let the redhead who had come charging into her life slip through her fingers. Even when she had to chance to ask her to come with her, to drop everything and go with her… she didn’t. That feeling in her chest returned, a tugging that would lead her nowhere because she didn’t know where she had to go.</p><p>
  <i>If I had another chance… I would have dropped everything to run to you.</i>
</p><p>Honoka still couldn’t quite identify that feeling but it was eating away at her. She felt frustrated, defeated, angry, disappointed, sad. She wanted to cry and punch herself. But why? Now that Riko wasn’t next to her, now that she was alone again, she realized something she had avoided thinking about for years.</p><p>Honoka hated being alone. It was terrifying. If she got hurt, there would be nobody to help her. She went days at a time without speaking to a single soul save herself. At first, she had acknowledged how scary it was, always being alone, but she had pushed it away, back into her mind and accepted it. But after just a short time with Riko by her side, she felt like the world was a much brighter, much bigger place than she could even imagine. A forest that she had been to countless times suddenly seemed like a whole new place, full of adventure and happiness. Colours stuck out more, everything from the stalls of the town to the food they ate just felt… right. And now those vibrant colours of the world had faded away. Now all she had, once again, were her maps.</p><p>Turning in defeat, Honoka let out a long sigh.</p><p>“In the end… nothing changes, does it?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey guys! A new chapter pretty soon. I hope you all enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ah, Honoka-kun, you’re ba―” A tall black-haired boy, not much older than the ginger started to say but paused as he watched Honoka drag herself through the door to his shop and let her forehead slam onto the front desk. “Um… Honoka-kun?”</p><p>Honoka’s slowly lifted her head and stared at the boy for a bit before she slammed her head back onto the desk. “Tatsuya~ I screwed up. Tatsuyaaaaaa~”</p><p>The boy sighed but smiled at the girl. It’s not like this was the first time she had shown up in some kind of strange state. He reached under the desk and took out a glass jar filled with cookies and popped the top open. Honoka twitched at the sound and slowly looked up.</p><p>“Ah, Miyuki’s homemade cookies sure are great.” Tatsuya commented absently while munching on one of the cookies himself. “Too bad depressed people aren’t allowed to eat them. It’s really a shame. I’m afraid you’ll have to come back another time if you want them, Honoka-kun.”</p><p>Honoka bounced up with incredible speed and snatched a cookie from the jar, devouring it in seconds. “I’m fine! Miyuki-chan’s cookies are the best! When was Miyuki-chan here though? You didn’t have cookies for me the other day… unless you were hiding them.” She narrowed her eyes, but Tatsuya waved off the accusation.</p><p>“She was visiting from the capital two days ago. Unfortunately, she did not have the time to stick around to wait for you to come back, so she headed back.” To Tatsuya, it almost looked like Honoka deflated even more if that was possible, but she grabbed another cookie from the jar and started chewing on it.</p><p>“I can’t believe I missed Miyuki-chan. Can anything go right!?”</p><p>Tatsuya sighed. “I’ll listen to your woes, Honoka-kun, but can you give me your map so I can get started on it?”</p><p>“Yeeeeah~”</p><p>Honoka dug through her pack and produced the tube with her freshly finished map and took out the parchment, handing it over to the boy. He examined it and nodded.</p><p>“As always, a fine job. How many of these do you want made?”</p><p>“Um… not a lot. Probably one hundred or so. I think they’ll only really be useful for people in Quensaille. If they sell well, use some of my cut to print more and we’ll just keep splitting the profits until they stop buying.”</p><p>Tatsuya nodded. “Sounds good. Oh, that reminds me.” He walked into a back room and came back out and dropped a decently large sack on the counter. “This arrived for you while you were out. This is your cut of the map sales from mapping the outskirts of the capital region.”</p><p>“… What!?” Honoka opened the bag and observe all the gold inside. “H-How much is in here!? Did you count it?”</p><p>“439 pieces of gold.”</p><p>“What!?” Honoka repeated, still astounded. “That’s the most a single map of mine has ever made! How? Why? I don’t get it. Anybody could have mapped out that region so why did they pick mine?” Tatsuya smirked and Honoka turned an eye on him. “You know something, don’t you, Tatsuya?”</p><p>“Well, I have heard some things. Miyuki told me quite the interesting story while she was here. Apparently, a few weeks ago, she saw Sonoda-san in the Guild in the capital. You know how her popularity has been skyrocketing lately, right? Well, as always, she was using your maps and, when people saw this, they all wanted one. According to Miyuki, she was so flustered when people started asking about you. Sounds like Sonoda-san, doesn’t it?”</p><p>Honoka laughed and nodded. “Yeah, that’s definitely Umi-chan. Well, even if she didn’t mean to promote my maps, I’ll have to thank her.” Honoka shuffled through the gold and counted some out. “Here’s eighty gold. Take forty of it and use it for funding this printing and maybe future printing if this one doesn’t sell so well. Clear any old tabs I have with the rest.” She threw a wink the boy’s way.</p><p>“Honoka-kun, I can’t take forty gold…”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, just take it. I’m homeless, you know. Are you trying to hurt poor Honoka’s back by making her carry so much gold? If you don’t want it, then use it to buy Miyuki-chan something nice for the next time she visits.”</p><p>“I might just do that.” They both share a laugh before Tatsuya remembers something. “It might be improper of me to remind you, but you seemed rather… distressed when you walked in. What was the matter?”</p><p>Honoka deflated in record time and Tatsuya slid the cookie jar closer to her. She looked at it for a second and took another one, quietly munching on it as she thought about what to say. 'I became really attached to some girl I met the other day and now she’s gone.’ Yeah, that didn’t seem right. What did even feel for Riko in the first place? She just wanted to see her again. To travel with her. To be around her. But now…</p><p>She let out a long sigh. “So, you know how I went out to map around Arghen and the Cerstain, right?” Tatsuya nodded. “I… can’t tell you the details. But I met a girl out there, I saved her from some people. And… I don’t know. Maybe because I’ve always been travelling alone, I started to feel attached to her.”</p><p>“Is that a bad thing?”</p><p>“It wouldn’t be but… I lost my chance to just… talk to her about it. I want to travel with her. I want to be with her. I don’t know what it is but… there was just something about her. Something that drew me to her. And now I can’t even act on if I want to. She’s gone.”</p><p>“When was the last time you saw her?”</p><p>“Not that long ago. But this is a big town. And she’ll probably be heading out of here soon enough anyways. Not to mention, if she’s smart, she’ll be putting on a disguise as soon as possible.”</p><p>“So that means she’s still here. Well then, Ihavemoregoldthaniknowwhattodowith-san. I think I may be able to point you in a good direction.”</p><p>“Eh?”</p><p>“The Cat is in town. I believe you’ve dealt with her in the past, right? She’s staying at Silver Moon Inn. I would hurry up before either your precious beloved leaves or the Cat leaves.”</p><p>Honoka’s eyes suddenly lit up and she ran around the counter to hug Tatsuya tightly. “Thank you!” She grabbed the gold sack and quickly shoved it into her pack before running to the door. And pausing. She ran back and grabbed two more cookies before actually sprinting out the shop this time. Tatsuya just sighed and chuckled to himself.</p><p>“What are we going to do with you, Honoka-kun?” He looked at the map the girl had given him and nodded. “Well, time to get to work.”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>“Five gold.” The orange-haired, fit, noticeably flat girl tossed five gold pieces onto the table and took a look at her cards again. She made a show of flipping out her long gray coat that was way too large on her and tipping her wide-brimmed hat.</p><p>“Ten gold.” One of the thuggish looking men who sat across from her called out, tossing double the gold next to hers.</p><p>“You’re feeling really adventurous today, nya. Fine. Ten gold!” She tossed five more pieces and placed her cards down: a pair of tens.</p><p>A moment of silence passed as the thug looked back and forth between his two companions before smirking and throwing down his own cards: a pair of queens. The entire table went quiet for a bit as everybody stared at the result. Then it broke into cheers from the thug’s side with the girl holding her head with both hands and yelling.</p><p>Honoka walked in just in time to witness the spectacle, snickering at the girl’s misfortune. Or that’s what the girl would call it anyways. Honoka watched as the man threw ten gold back her way and said something. The Cat waved one of her hands dramatically before taking an envelope out of her pocket and sliding it across the table. The thug opened it and examined the contents before nodding. All of the tough looking guys got up to leave but gave the girl a wave on their way out.</p><p>“Rin-chan~!” Honoka wrapped her arms around the girl from behind giving her a start. “Long time no see.”</p><p>“Oh, if it isn’t Honoka-chan.” Rin motioned to the chair next to her. “Come on, sit down. I just finished some business so I’m free right now. What’s up? Need some info on an area before exploring it again? I’ve got all the latest intel on the roads around the capital… and for the right price, some roads further.” Rin’s signature smirk made Honoka laugh but she shook her head.</p><p>“I’m here for something different this time. Two things actually. And it’s kind of time sensitive so I’d like it if we could hurry up.” Rin’s smirk dropped, replaced by a serious expression as she leaned forward. “There’s a girl in this town right now. Riko. Long red hair, beautiful, about our age, maybe a little younger. Seen her around?”</p><p>Rin just stared at her for a bit and when Honoka realized she wasn’t deep in thought trying to process her request, she sighed and threw out ten gold pieces onto the table. Rin happily scooped them up.<br/>
“I would never charge you ten gold, you know, Honoka-chan.”</p><p>“Take it and tell me. Consider it payment for the second bit I’ll need to know as well.” Rin just nodded. “Yeah, I’ve had my people see her around today. In fact, the second she arrived in town with you I had reports flooding in. All the men love her. She’s a real looker.” Rin leaned forward and her smirk returned. “So, what’s so special about her?”</p><p>“Eh? She’s just a friend of―”</p><p>“That’s not what I mean.” Rin sighed and looked around before leaning closer and dropping her voice to a whisper. “Since you gave me so much, I’ll tell you something extra. We intercepted a report from the capital. An entire regiment is on their way to secure a girl matching the description you just gave. Unfortunately for you, they’re using magic to get close. They’ll be here in a few hours, three at most.”</p><p>Honoka’s mouth fell open, eyes wide with shock. Already? How had intel already reached the King? And he had already acted on that intel!? Somebody must have seen Riko cross the border. Or maybe there was a spy in Coulchen that reported it. Either way, it meant that Honoka’s time sensitive search was crunched down even more.</p><p>“Where is she!?” Honoka half-yelled but lowered her voice immediately after she drew the eyes of several customers. “Where is she?” She repeated.</p><p>“She was hopping from pub to pub, but last I heard, she was in the church. Better hurry, Honoka-chan.”</p><p>“Thank you! Ah, really quick. Do you know anything about a ‘Great Sage.’ Riko’s looking for him for… reasons.”</p><p>Rin watched her closely and Honoka could feel those eyes burning holes through her. But she just shrugged, took out a piece of paper and held out her hand. Honoka quickly took out her quill and inkwell and handed them over. Rin scribbled something down and folded it over before sliding the items back her way.</p><p>“Get going. Before your girl leaves.”</p><p>Honoka nodded and jumped up but she quickly reached into her pack and tosses five more gold on the table. “I never asked about either of those things.” Rin just shrugged and scooped up the gold.<br/>
“What things?” Rin stood up and gave the other ginger a pat on the shoulder. “Hopefully we see each other again soon, Honoka-chan.”</p><p>“Mm! Then, I’m off!” Honoka dashed out the inn leaving Rin smiling at her back.</p><p>Not two minutes after Honoka left, a man burst through the door, looking around before locking his eyes onto Rin who lifted her hat up a bit to get a good look at him.</p><p>“Trouble!”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>
  <i>Shit. Shit. Shit.</i>
</p><p>As Honoka ran towards the towering church, the reality of everything began to settle in. Soldiers! They were already on their way! They hadn’t even been in town an entire day and Riko was already in danger! Had she brought the girl into this danger by just bringing her to town? She liked to think not. But she didn’t have time to consider that.</p><p>She had to take Riko and get her out of town as soon as possible. But where would they go? The capital? That would be even more dangerous for obvious reasons. There were other major cities that she could go to, but word would likely spread to them just as quickly. Hell, if soldiers were already on their way here, every city in the nation had probably gotten some magical message about being on the lookout for her.</p><p>“Riko!” Honoka burst through the church doors, her voice echoing up and down in the empty building. “Riko, where are you!?” She moved forward slowly, checking through all the pews.</p><p>There was a long moment of silence before a soft, angelic voice reached her ears. It immediately filled her with warmth, pushed all of her doubts and fears to the side. She could almost feel tears coming leaking, all from just a single word, from her name.</p><p>“Honoka?”</p><p>Riko stood from her position in one of the front pews and turned to look her way, she looked happy to see her again but there as clear confusion. Honoka had to stop herself from falling to her knees. She sprinted up to her and grabbed her hands.</p><p>“Don’t leave without me!” She blurted out and her face immediately heated up. “Ah… I mean…!” She shook her head. This wasn’t the time for empty words. If there was ever a time to pour her heart out, it was now. So, she steeled herself and grabbed a foothold in those amber eyes full of surprise, confusion. “I… want to protect you.” She admitted. “I’m not sure why. But I can’t leave you alone. I won’t be able to sleep at night knowing you’re out there by yourself. Ah, um. I know this must sound weird but… well, I want to be with you!”</p><p>She looked down, too afraid to look into the eyes of the redhead. But she felt Riko release her hands and with them, she felt her hope depleting. Riko took a few steps past her but began to speak.</p><p>“You know, I hate being alone.”</p><p>“Eh?” Honoka turned but could only stare at her back.</p><p>“I really do. Ever since I became a Relic, I’ve been alone, trapped in a room in the royal palace. At most I might exchange words with somebody who would actually respond a couple times a year. It was horrible. I cried and cried… until I had nothing left to cry anymore. I accepted it. That I would be there for the rest of my life, that I was nothing more than a tool to be used when Coulchen decided to go to war again. But you know…” She walked to one of the pews and gently ran a finger along it. “I don’t know if they became lax, but they decided to move me during the royal guards’ training. So only two guards pulled me along. I guess I can’t blame them. I had been a lifeless husk for so long at that point.”</p><p>Honoka felt the weight of the story on her chest. Why did Riko have to be treated so poorly just because she had a Relic inside of her? Were they so desperate for these weapons that they would throw such a beautiful girl into the throes of despair? Were they so desperate that they would break her if it meant using her when it was convenient for them? Honoka clenched her fists at her side but stayed quiet as the redhead continued.</p><p>“But… maybe I never did give up. In the back of my head, I always thought… maybe, just maybe… if I could escape that palace, I would find somebody. Somebody who would laugh and smile with me, somebody who would see Sakurauchi Riko and not a Relic. Honestly, even if I was trapped in the palace, as long as I had somebody, maybe I wouldn’t have minded. But no. I was alone. Maybe because of that, I still clung to the tiniest hope, that one day I would find a person. A friend. And that’s why I ran away. I saw my opportunity and took it. I even ended up having to throw myself from the castle walls to get away though. But it’s fine. I got away. I earned my freedom.”<br/>
She slowly turned and a wide smile spread across her face, one that seemed lit up from light dripping through the stained-glass windows.</p><p>“And I found that person. A person who laughed with me, smiled with me, talked with me, treated me like Riko. I may be just a Relic, but…” Riko held out her hand. “If you’re fine with that, then I would love to travel with you, Honoka.”</p><p>Honoka could feel tears threatening to overflow but she shook her head and stormed up to the girl, grabbing her arm instead of her hand and raising her voice.</p><p>“That’s wrong! You just said it! You want someone who can see you! You’re not just a Relic! You’re Sakurauchi Riko! The human, the person! My…” Honoka paused, feeling like she was about to say something she would have regretted in the near future. “My friend!” She shifted her grip down to the girl’s hand. “I’ll make sure everybody can see just how great Sakurauchi Riko is. And they’ll even forget that you’re a Relic.”</p><p>She looked deep into that amber eyes that now brimmed with tears. And those tears flowed, slowly, painfully slowly down the redhead’s face until they fell to the ground. Honoka wasn’t sure if she was hearing her heartbeat or those tears hitting the ground in the silence. But Riko finally nodded and spoke, her voice coming as barely a whisper.</p><p>“Thank you, Honoka.”</p><p>Just as Honoka felt like she could get lost in those amber pools, one of the stained-glass windows smashed, glass flying down around them. Honoka jumped in front of Riko but when she looked down, she tilted her head in confusion. It wasn’t a rock that had broken it, nor a person jumping through. A piece of paper, folded to look like a cat, stood at her feet.</p><p>“W-What…?” Riko started to ask but Honoka’s eyes lit up in recognition.</p><p>She picked up the cat and unfolded it. Just two sentences.</p><p><b>Somebody sold you out. Get out of town. </b>A small crudely drawn cat face sat under the message.</p><p>A cold sweat started down her back. They were here? Already? Impossible. It had been less than an hour since she had spoken with Rin. Unless… true, there was no way Rin could have known how far they travelled using magic. They must have been much closer.</p><p>“Fuck…” Honoka mumbled and turned to look at Riko who was just looking at her in confusion. “We need to go. Now. They’re here.”</p><p>“’They?’”</p><p>“Soldiers from the capital. I don’t know how, but word about you has already gotten around and there in this town now. We need to―”</p><p>The door to the church burst open for the second time that day. “I believe you need to surrender quietly.” A girl’s voice. Tall, rich blue eyes, flowing dark hair, armour that… really didn’t protect much. But Honoka recognized the insignia of Alcronde’s military on her armour. “Asaka Karin, vice-commander of Alcronde’s military. I’ll have you hand over the Relic, girl.” Honoka looked to the girl’s hip where a sword sat and several soldiers rushed in, some with swords, some with crossbows leveled her way.</p><p>All she had for protection was a dagger in her bag, but it saw more use for carving wood and cutting plants than actual combat. She had been in a few skirmishes along the road, but she was far from trained and now she was facing several trained soldiers. And from the noise outside, she assumed there were at least twenty or thirty more. They probably had the whole building surrounded.</p><p>“I refuse! Don’t lay your filthy hands on Riko!”</p><p>She had to buy time. Just keep talking. There had to be some way out of there situation but what?</p><p>“Haha! Giving a Relic a name? Pathetic. Why would she have such a need?” She smirked and brought a hand to her chin. “His Majesty just wishes to meet with her. Perhaps she’ll be treated better here than in Coulchen.”<br/>
“I don’t give a damn what you say! I’m not letting you take her!”</p><p>Something… anything…</p><p>Karin frowned and snapped her fingers. A click. And then pain.</p><p>“Agh!” Honoka doubled over from a sharp pain in her stomach and looked down. A bolt was firmly planted in her, blood already started to drip from the wound.</p><p>“Honoka!” Riko reached out for her but Honoka signaled for her to stop.</p><p>“I… I swear, Riko… urgh…! I’ll… I’ll get you out of here… no matter what!” She spoke through clenched teeth and tried to sound confident, but she had no idea what to do. With a bolt stuck in her, running had pretty much been eliminated as an option. She felt bad, terrible. Was she going to break her promise to protect the girl already?</p><p>When Honoka looked at Riko, the redhead looked even more panicked than she did. Well, that was probably a given considering she had just been shot with a crossbow. Damn, it hurt. It hurt much more than she imagined it would have. Where had her confidence gone? She had felt so confident about protecting Riko just a few minutes before… but now… Would they both here? No, if it came to it, maybe she could throw herself at them and let Riko escape. Though, she would probably get cut down before she even reached them, she figured.</p><p>“This is your last chance. Surrender the Relic or die.” Karin’s voice was cold, to the point. Honoka had no doubt that the girl would have zero qualms with killing her.</p><p>
  <i>But… What do I…?</i>
</p><p>“Honoka… you really are crazy…” Riko’s voice reached her ears and it was surprisingly calm. She turned to look at her and felt the girl’s hand on her cheek. “You even got shot trying to protect me… Why…? We only just met the other day…”</p><p>Just met the other day? What did that matter? What Honoka felt for this girl… she wanted so desperately to protect her…</p><p>“Of course!” Honoka managed to yell through her pain but it caused her to double over again. “You… don’t deserve any of this bullshit… I’ll protect you. I’ll get you out of here with a smile on your face… We’re friends! And I won’t let my friend die!”</p><p>“Then…” Riko reached down and that soft hand caressed the ginger’s cheek again. She helped tilt Honoka’s head to look up at her. Those amber eyes glowed, softly but they were definitely glowing. Honoka felt herself getting lost in those eyes, felt her heart fluttering, her body feeling lighter. “Would you… die for me?”</p><p>Something came over her body then. The pain vanished and she stood with no trouble. Everything felt like it vanished around her, like they were alone in that church. And for all she cared at that one moment, they were. A smile spread across her face and she blinked once, but those amber eyes were still there. This was no dream, it was her reality. And she would protect it no matter what.</p><p>“If being by your side for just one more second kills me, then I’m fine killing myself.”</p><p>As soon as it left her mouth, she realized how cheesy that line was. And how embarrassing it was. her face would have flushed if she had time but when she saw the smile that spread across Riko’s face, followed by one of those giggles that made her heart do a flip, she lost that sense of embarrassment. That feeling of confidence came back into her.</p><p>“Then…” Riko reached down and grabbed the ginger’s hand. She brought it close to her, holding it tightly against her chest and this time Honoka’s face did flush.</p><p>“R-Riko, what…?”</p><p>“I trust you, Honoka. So… take me. I’ll give you my power so make sure to save us, okay?” That kind smile, those eyes full of trust. Honoka felt like she could take on the world when she looked into them. They gave her an irreplaceable confidence.</p><p>“Mm. I’ll take on anybody for you.” Where did that confidence come from? She didn’t know. And maybe she never would. But it didn’t matter in that moment. All that mattered was that she truly felt in that moment that she could protect her.</p><p>It took Honoka a moment to realize that Riko’s eyes were glowing ever brighter, those Amber eyes could light up the entire church. Honoka flinched as a sudden pain shot through her arm and when she looked to Riko’s chest, to her hand, she saw… a chain? It was definitely a chain, but it looked like glass, she could see right through it. And it was coming right out of Riko’s chest, wrapping around her wrist. It dug into her and it hurt horribly, it felt like her hand would be pulled off.</p><p>But she saw the smile remain on Riko’s face, so she dealt with it. It felt like Riko shifted them and when she looked up, she could see Riko’s back was facing the doorway. The girl, Karin, was yelling something but Honoka’s couldn’t hear it.</p><p>“Grab it… Take it, Honoka. Hold it tightly. Feel it in your hand. Feel me.”</p><p>Something felt right, like she knew what to do. She pulled her hand away, the chain extended further from Riko’s chest and the redhead flinched slightly at the motion. Honoka looked at her hand and the closed it slightly. She definitely felt… something. Something was in her hand but… it was more like it was just floating there. Then everything came back, all the sounds.</p><p>“I’m telling you! If you accidentally kill the Relic, it’ll be our heads!”</p><p>“B-But she’s already contracted, Vice Commander!”</p><p>
  <i>Contracted?</i>
</p><p>Honoka looked back into Riko’s eyes which had never stopped watching her the entire time. She felt again, felt the cool metal in her hand and gripped it tightly.</p><p>“What do I do, Riko?”</p><p>“Feel it. Feel me. I’m in your hands now. You’re no longer unarmed. You’re wielding one of the most powerful weapons in the world. All you have to do is take it. You’ve already pulled it from its sheath. It’s time to let it shine.”</p><p>“Eh? I don’t… I don’t have any experience using swords.”</p><p>“It doesn’t matter right now. I have yet to be ‘used’ so… just release the mana within me. You’ll know how to do it. Trust me.”</p><p>Trust… Riko put an absolute trust in her and she wasn’t going to let that go unreciprocated. She grabbed that sword, that weapon as tightly as she could and called out.</p><p>
  <i>Please! I need you right now! You’re resting in Riko, right? So, you want to protect her too, right? Then, let me use you! Give me the power to protect Riko!</i>
</p><p>Really, she wasn’t expecting much from calling in her mind, but she felt the chain vibrate and then glass shattering, drawing the eyes of all the soldiers. But nobody had thrown a rock through the stained-glass. Honoka flinched at the sound but when she opened her eyes again, she could see it. A large black sword, unlike anything she had ever seen before. White lines ran up and down in seemingly random patterns, glowing every so slightly. It was something straight out of a fantasy novel, she thought.</p><p>It was larger than the swords she had seen before, but she wouldn’t say it was big enough to be a greatsword. Just somewhere in-between. But she had a weapon. And that was all that mattered. She saw the chain that had wrapped around her wrist extended to the sword now. It was her sword. Her Relic. Her eyes drifted back to Riko who nodded confidently.</p><p>Honoka took a step past her, putting herself between Riko and the soldiers.</p><p>“You damn kids are really making this hard.” Karin said with obvious annoyance. “I should have killed you when I had the chance. I never imagined the Relic would be so desperate that it would use an inexperienced little girl like you.”</p><p>Before Honoka could retort, Riko spoke from behind her. “You’re wrong. There is only one person worthy of wielding each Relic in the world. Honoka is only one who can wield me.”</p><p>“Haha! Well, let’s prove that theory wrong. We’ll kill her right here. Men! Fire!” Several soldiers leveled their crossbows once again but Honoka felt… confident. She felt safe. None of those bolts would reach her.</p><p>“Call to it, Honoka. It will respond. Give it a new name, one worthy of you. You’re the owner, it’s just your possession now. So, it’s your job to name it!”</p><p>Riko’s voice rang clear in her and it felt like time slowed down. Honoka smiled. This was the beginning of everything. She already knew her life would be forever changed. But she was ready for that. She was ready when she decided to find Riko. When she called out to her, she knew everything would change. But it would all be fine. Because this was just the beginning…</p><p>“Lend me your strength, <b>Prologue</b>.” The glowing white lines shone brightly in the dimly lit church. Several clicks of crossbows but time had slowed down for her. She could see them travelling at her, but they came so slowly she knew she could just step out of the way if she wanted to. But no, Riko was behind her. “Let’s show them… just how strong you really are.” She whispered quietly and held the sword back with both hands before swinging it forward.</p><p>A force as if she had thrown another building into that one shook the entire church. Stained glass shattered, the soldiers were thrown off their feet, crossbows were shattered by the invisible force. Even Karin fell to one knee but managed to keep herself from being blown away. Some of the soldiers in the back weren’t as lucky, getting blown straight out the door and into their comrades. Pews were destroyed and the two statues that flanked either side of the entryway were reduced to rubble. It lasted only a few seconds before Honoka pulled it back and took a deep breath. She had no idea what just happened, but the sword really had lent her its power. No. It was like Riko had said. The sword’s power was hers now. She felt like she could use that power, even though she knew that in an actual swordfight she would have no chance. But this. This was their chance. Soldiers were on the floor and the entryway was passable.</p><p>Honoka grabbed Riko’s hand and held the sword high above her head.</p><p>“Shroud us in the night!” The white lines glowed again and then everything was black. Not normal darkness, but a thick black darkness that obscured even sound.</p><p>The soldiers were thrown into a panic. Karin tried to yell orders, but it was no use. There was no picking out her voice in the commotion, especially with the darkness already impairing their ability to communicate. But it was gone not long after it appeared. But the two girls were also gone.</p><p>“Tch. Men! Get on your feet! Lock down the town! Find the Relic!”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>Honoka dashed along the side of the town, cutting in as soon as she could to hide. She was grateful the darkness had covered even outside the church or they would have been in trouble. As soon as they were back between buildings, she let go of the sword and it faded away, the chain vanishing as well. She still held tightly onto Riko’s hand though and continued moving through people who were headed in the church’s direction. They had probably seen the ball of darkness and were confused about it.</p><p>Honoka was starting to feel exhausted though. Apparently using that Relic had taken a lot out of her. Maybe she wasn’t worthy of wielding it after all. But she laughed that thought away. If Riko chose her, then she would wield that Relic and use it to protect the redhead. There was no way she wasn’t worthy of it.</p><p>“Haha!” Despite their situation, Honoka felt herself laughing, a genuine laugh that came from her entire being. She was happy. And why wouldn’t she be? She was running off to start a new step in her life, a new step with Riko at her side. Everything felt right.</p><p>She looked back to see Riko smiling once again. “What‘s so funny, Honoka?” She called out.</p><p>“Funny? Ahaha! Nothing like that, Riko! I’m just so happy!”</p><p>They weaved their way through buildings until they got to the edge of town. Should they just run for it though? They would probably be searching the entire town for that, so maybe it was the right call. But…</p><p>“Oi! Honoka-chan!” Honoka looked around before seeing a hand waving at her from between two buildings. They ran over to it and Rin immediately yanked them in.</p><p>“R-Rin-chanー?” Honoka started but suddenly grabbed at her stomach. With the adrenaline and whatever was coursing through her before, she had completely forgotten about the bolt. But now the pain was back and damn did it hurt. “Ugh… Ah, right… they got me pretty good, haha…”</p><p>Riko leaned down to try to help her but Rin held out a hand to stop her. “Move aside.” She reached into her larger than necessary coat and took out a small vial with a green liquid inside, shoving it into the other ginger’s hand. “Start drinking this. Listen, I’m going to pull this bolt out, but you can’t stop drinking, alright?”</p><p>Honoka nodded slowly and took the vial. After a deep breath, she started chugging, bracing herself for the pain. And damn did it come. Rin wasn’t kidding when she said she was going to pull it out. She held nothing back as she yanked it out, almost making Honoka choke on the contents of the vial. But she held it there and managed to get the liquid down her throat, even through the burning pain. Blood poured out the wound and stained her shirt. The area felt warm, but the wound felt cold.</p><p>“You’re doing great, Honoka-chan. Make sure you drink all of it.”</p><p>As Honoka drained the last of the tasteless liquid, she shook her head, her breath coming heavy from the pain. She clutched her side but when she did, she didn’t feel the wound. She rubbed her hand in the area. There was still blood, a decent amount of it that poured out when the bolt was pulled, but the wound itself was nowhere to be found. Honoka slowly looked up at the other ginger who was smirking.</p><p>“Rin-chan, what…?”</p><p>“Elixir. Don’t worry about it. I’ll put it on your tab.”</p><p>“Elixir!? Isn’t that worth over twenty thousand gold!?"</p><p>“Yeah, yeah. This is a free service since my information turned out to be pretty shitty.” She looked around and brought them out through the other side of the alley. When they came out, they found themselves outside a shabby looking side road leading into the forest. It had clearly not seen use in a long time. Which made sense, Honoka thoughy, since this wasn’t the usual road that wagons took to get to the capital. But a wagon was waiting there with a man who tipped his hat to Rin. “And this is another free service.”</p><p>“Rin-chan, this is…”</p><p>“It’ll take you longer, but he’ll get you out of here. I’ve already paid him.” Her eyes drifted to Riko. “Listen, you’re a wanted woman now. Take this, as my last free service since Honoka-chan is one of my favourite customers. Geez, I can't believe how generous I'm being today.” She pulled out a cloak from… nowhere? At least neither of the two girls could see where she pulled it out from. It was a plain brown cloak with a hood. A small insignia that helped hold the hood had the image of a cat on it. “Go on, put it on.”</p><p>Riko panicked a bit at the sudden command but did as she was told, putting on the cloak and pulling the hood over her head. Rin reached out and tapped the cat insignia.</p><p>“Look, Honoka-chan.”</p><p>Honoka tilted her head, not quite sure what she was supposed to be seeing first. But when she tried to peek under the hood, she got it. No matter what angle she looked from, she couldn’t see under the hood. She could see Riko’s chin and mouth but that was pretty much it. Her eyes were completely obscured.</p><p>“A magic cloak? A-Are you sure, Rin-chan?”</p><p>Rin just shrugged. “I only have one right now and she’s the one known around the country. And, I may say that this is free, but knowing you're contracted with a Relic is invaluable information, even if I don't sell it. Anyways, I would get some kind of disguise soon if I were you, Honoka-chan. After attacking the Vice Commander, you’ll be a wanted woman as well soon enough. Once they report back, your wanted poster will be all over the country."</p><p>Honoka nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. But well, that’s the fun part, huh?” Rin just laughed. “But thank you, Rin-chan. This really means a lot. I’m glad we’re friends.”</p><p>“Hey, hey, don’t start getting all sentimental on me. You're lucky we've known each for so long or you wouldn't even get this trreatment.” Rin pointed at Honoka’s pocket. “At this point, there probably is nothing for you to do but go see that ‘Great Sage’ of yours. I only gave you a lead. Even I don’t know where to find him. I’ll have some of my men look into it though. I’ll update you if I find anything." She paused and smirked. "That info will cost you."</p><p>Honoka laughed and nodded again then wrapped her arms around the girl. Rin laughed and reciprocated the hug.</p><p>“Thank you, Rin-chan.”</p><p>“Be careful out there, Honoka-chan. The world’s changing and I have a bad feeling that this girl, and you by extension, will be at the centre of it. Now, get going before they close off every road out of here. If you’re not in the forest before they spot you, you’re doomed.”</p><p>“Mm! Let’s go, Riko.”</p><p>Honoka started moving toward the wagon and Riko followed, pausing to give a bow in Rin’s direction. “Thank you, Rin-san.” Rin just waved her off and she took Honoka’s hand to help get into the wagon.</p><p>They waved at Rin as they started off down the road. She watched until they disappeared into the forest and sighed. She took out a small blue crystal and tapped it, the gem emitting a dull glow. She leaned down and whispered.</p><p>“It’s time to run interference, men.”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>Until they got into the forest, neither of the girls said anything, both slightly afraid that they would suddenly hear the shouting of soldiers behind them and that would be the end. But there were no soldiers chasing them. Thanks to Rin, they had escaped. For now, they could relax. Both of them let out sighs of relief and Riko was the first to speak up.</p><p>“Prologue, huh?”</p><p>Honoka’s face flushed and she knew there was no way in hell that she could tell it was her pure thoughts as a romantic that led to that name. But, as if reading her mind, Riko continued.</p><p>“You’re a real romantic, Honoka.”</p><p>“C-Come on! I thought it was pretty creative. And Prologue clearly didn’t have a problem with the name.” She crossed her arms and looked away.</p><p>Riko giggled. “Sorry, sorry. I think it’s a good name. Really. I look forward to being used by you, Honoka.” Though Riko meant it as she said it, Honoka shook her head before she was even finished.</p><p>“I’m not using you. I meant what I said before. You’re not some weapon to be wielded and I’ll never think of you like that. You’re Sakurauchi Riko, my…” She paused to think of the appropriate word. “… partner.”</p><p>“Partner…” Riko burst out laughing this time and Honoka failed to stop herself from getting flustered again. But Riko was nodding before the ginger could say anything. “I like it. Partners, huh?” She reached out her hand. “Then, I look forward to working with you, partner.”</p><p>The pure smile made Honoka melt but she nodded and took that hand. It felt so soft and warm. It was the hand she wanted to hold throughout this entire adventure. No matter where their path lead, she wanted to be able to reach out for that hand. And right now, she could. A small smile crept onto her face and she felt the whole weight of the situation lift from her shoulders.</p><p>Even though she had traveled with people in the past, it always short-lived. Always just something for convenience. In the end, she was always still alone. Whether she was in the middle of the city, in the woods, the coast, anywhere, she always felt like she was by herself, that there was no one else to share moments of happiness with her.</p><p>But for the first time in years, it was no longer just Honoka and her maps.</p><p>Accompanying her was the most beautiful, kind redhead that she had ever met, a girl that was just scared for her future, who sought someone to share her own moments, her struggles, her happiness with.</p><p>And that was enough for her.</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>“What? A Relic escaped from Coulchen?” Black hair, pink eyes, a robe that was way too long for her. This girl turned to yell at the small redhead behind her.</p><p>“E-Eh!? C-Calm down, Yoshiko-chan!” The redhead squeaked out.</p><p>“It’s Yohane! And nay, Ruby! Do you not see what is before us!? A comrade! A new comrade to our cause!”</p><p>“T-The last time you said that, we got rejected…”</p><p>“Quiet! This time will be different!”</p><p>“W-What do we do if they say no?”</p><p>Yoshiko tilted her head, giving the redhead a look like it should be obvious. “We kill them like always, of course. Now, pack your bags, Ruby. We’re going!”</p><p>“Ehhh? All the way to Alcorde!?”</p><p>“Yes! Where else would we go!?” Yoshiko turned around, throwing her robe out for a dramatic billowing effect. “It’s time for the fallen angel Yohane to descend upon this land!”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And Yohane prepares for her appearance.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Ambush</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>They might have escaped immediate danger, but our heroines are never safe!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Fueh…?” Honoka slowly opened her eyes, grogginess hitting her immediately, the desire to close her eyes and go back to sleep strong. But she felt a slight shift next to her and turned her head.</p><p>A clear as day red snapped her awake instantly. Riko’s head rested against her shoulder, hair messy and strewn about over the ginger’s chest and arm. Honoka didn’t think it was possible to go from ‘practically still asleep’ to ‘why is my heart beating out of my chest’ in an instant, but she was proven wrong. She looked out the back of the wagon, light was fluttering in which meant that they had gone through the night. This driver had way more energy than her, that’s for sure.</p><p>“Excuse me.” She called out as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake the redhead up and ruin that beautiful moment.</p><p>“Hm?”</p><p>“I suppose it’s late to ask this, but where exactly are you taking us? Rin-chan didn’t mention. Also, you can take a break if you need one, we’ve been going all night, right?”</p><p>“Haha, don’t worry about me, girl. I’m getting paid plenty by the boss for this, one all nightery won’t kill me. As for the location… Lycota. Once I drop you off there, you two are on your own.”</p><p>“Lycota, huh…?” Honoka thought about it for a bit. As far as she knew, Lycota was a town of no real note, relatively close to the capital. Wait. Close to the capital? “Eh!?” She covered her mouth when Riko shifted but the redhead didn’t wake up, so she lowered her voice and continued. “Lycota? Isn’t that place a little too close to the capital for wanted people like us?”</p><p>The man shrugged. “The boss told me that’s the location. She must have some reason for it. We’ll be there soon.”</p><p>Lycota… Why the hell would Rin send them there? Going anywhere near the capital should be a big no-no. And yet… Something dawned on Honoka then and she shifted slightly to fish the paper out of her pocket that Rin had given her. She unfolded it and took a quick read. But there was only one word.</p><p>
  <b>Sarchen.</b>
</p><p>Sarchen? The name sounded familiar, but she couldn’t place her finger on it. If Riko wasn’t asleep, she would take out all her maps and search them. But if she had mapped it before, then she would remember it. Which meant… maybe it was in another country? That was a possibility but why hadn’t Rin just told her? She’d like to believe the girl had her reasons but… why was Honoka left to find those out? Did everything have to be a riddle with that girl?<br/><br/>
Honoka sighed and looked back at the face of the girl sleeping peacefully next to her. Damn, that did wonders to get rid of her worries. What did Sarchen or Lycota or the capital matter when she could just stare at that beautiful face? But all good things came to an end. As if sensing Honoka’s eyes on her, Riko shifted and slowly opened her eyes. She sat up and yawned, stretching one of her arms above her before looking around, her gaze finally resting on Honoka.</p><p>“Ah, good morning, Honoka.”</p><p>Barely awake Riko was also adorable, Honoka thought but quickly shook her head.</p><p>“Good morning, Riko. Sleep well?”</p><p>“As well I can in a wagon, I suppose.” She giggled and nodded. “But I’m at least rested up.”</p><p>“That’s good…” Honoka paused. Wait. Something wasn’t right with what that man had said. They were almost there? She leaned forward and called out to him again. “Hey, we’re almost there? How… How is that possible? Even by wagon, shouldn’t that be a three-day trip?”</p><p>The man looked back and just shrugged again. “Sorry, boss’s orders.”</p><p>Boss’s orders? Wait… “Have we been asleep for three days!?”</p><p>“Haha! If you’re going to survive being wanted, you’ll have to think faster, girl. Listen, like I said. It was the boss’s orders. Why? Ask her next time you see her. I don’t give the orders, I just follow them.”</p><p>“How did that even happen though!?”</p><p>The man held up a small blue orb before shoving it back in his pocket. “Don’t worry, none of your stuff is missing. I’m not interested in stealing from some young girls, especially when they’re friends of the boss.”</p><p>Yeah, Rin was definitely an enigma. Honoka had been through a lot with her over the years, but they were still good friends. And it was probably because they were good friends that Rin would do things like that. It was probably just her idea of a prank or something. Or maybe there was a reason for it, but they couldn’t know. Yeah, she would never understand that girl.</p><p>“Look. You can see it.” Honoka and Riko moved forward to look out the front. Sure enough, in the distance, they could see the gate marking the entrance to Lycota and the buildings beyond. “Welcome to Lycota, girls.”</p><p>They both gave a collective “ooh” as they stared at the distant town. Honoka quickly fished through her bag and took out a map that she had drawn up of the area a while back. She grabbed her quill and inkwell and sat herself towards the back of the wagon, getting to work. Riko peeked over her shoulder, watching the ginger draw new lines along the existing ones.</p><p>“What are you doing, Honoka?”</p><p>“Updating my last map of the area. It doesn’t look like too much has changed, but there are some new things to consider.” She pointed out a few wooden outposts in certain areas as well as fenced off areas. “Those must have been built in the last month or so. It may seem trivial, but to a cartographer, it’s everything. Slight inconsistencies like not including those could make or break your reputation. I have a pretty good one, I’d say, and I’d like to keep it that way.”</p><p>“I see…” Riko didn’t know the first thing about cartography or if it was difficult or not to maintain a reputation in the field but she still nodded and quietly watched the ginger work. It was kind of mesmerizing. Honoka drew straight lines like it was nothing, curved those lines to signify structures and land changes in seconds, with practiced ease.</p><p>‘Beautiful’ would be the word Riko would use to describe it. She felt a smile spreading as she watched how happy the ginger seemed as she drew her map. The writing! The writing is beautiful, Riko reminded herself in her mind. But she did enjoy watching the ginger’s smile. It was peaceful. It made it seem like this whole situation would turn out just fine. And for some reason, she did believe that.</p><p>“Hm?” Honoka turned and Riko was confused for a second before she realized she had spaced out and tucked a few strands of hair behind one of the ginger’s ears.</p><p>“Ah…” Riko tugged her hand back quicker than she meant to. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to break your concentration…” Honoka failed to notice the pink tint on the redhead’s cheeks in lieu of her own embarrassment but she snapped her head back towards her map.</p><p>“D-Don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t be ignoring you anyways. I just get into my maps…”</p><p>“N-No, that’s okay! I think you should focus since you love them so much…”</p><p>“Pfft. Come on, Riko.” Honoka put her quill back to the map. “I can talk while I do it. So, we should talk. I wanted to ask you how you feel about this whole situation anyways.”</p><p>“How I feel?”</p><p>“Mm. Though I’m part of this… whatever this is, now, everything is centering on you right now. If they capture you, they probably wouldn’t even bother arresting or executing me. Not that I’ll let them capture you. But that is their primary goal. Are you afraid? Nervous?”</p><p>Honoka asked mainly because she was the one feeling nervous. Fixing her map was the only thing keeping her hands steady and her mind focused. Riko was silent for a moment but placed one hand on the ginger’s shoulder. Honoka didn’t need to look back to know the radiant smile that was shining behind her.</p><p>“I’m not afraid. I was. I definitely was. But now… I think having you around makes me feel safe. Even after learning the truth you didn’t treat me differently. And now you’re even risking your life to help me. How could I be afraid?” Riko’s touch was gentle and the words and her giggle afterwards made Honoka’s face flush.</p><p>“I-Is that so? I’m glad.” Honoka tried her best to calm her racing heart, but the girl’s hand on her shoulder was keeping it at a constant speed.</p><p>“What about you?”</p><p>“Huh?”</p><p>“Even if you did throw yourself into this mess voluntarily, it… it’ll change your life forever.” Honoka turned to look the redhead in the eyes, but Riko was sheepishly rubbing one arm while diverting her gaze. “You’re… Now that you have a Relic, it… it might not just be the King that’s after you. Relics… fetch a high price, you know. Everybody in the world wants to get their hands on one. So… you’ll always be in danger because of me.”</p><p>Honoka held up her hand and silently called out to the Relic inside the girl. Riko looked at her in surprise when the translucent chain appeared from her chest and reached out to wrap around Honoka’s hand. The weapon didn’t appear but Honoka gently grasped the chain and smiled up at the girl.</p><p>“We’ll be in danger. I don’t want you to feel guilty, Riko. This was my choice and I don’t regret it at all. And I know there will never be a day when I do.”</p><p>“Y-You don’t know that… What if the day comes that you do? Now that you’ve contracted with Prologue, it’s not even possible to just drop everything and leave it. I was so desperate to survive that I basically forced you into a contract!” Riko’s voice raised and tears threatened to spill over from those amber orbs. “Because of me, your life is ruined! Now that you’re part of this… one wrong move and everything is over. I… I…”</p><p>Honoka let go of the chain which vanished immediately and grabbed the girl’s hands, squeezing them tightly, forcing the redhead to look her way.</p><p>“Riko. If I didn’t want to do it, then I wouldn’t have. I want…” Honoka could feel her face becoming flushed but she still forced the words out. “I want to be by your side.” That was a lot harder to say than she would have liked. She cleared her throat. “A-Anyways, don’t say that you ruined my life or anything. I love maps, but I can’t spend my entire life alone with them. That’s why I felt so excited, so happy when I helped you. I thought, ‘maybe this is what I’ve been looking for.’” She shook her head. Why was she saying so many embarrassing things? “W-Well, there you have it. I want to be here and so I am.”</p><p>She looked back at Riko who wore a gentle smile. Would she ever get tired of seeing that beautiful smile? No. There was no way she ever could. If she could see that smile every day, she would…</p><p>“Thank you, Honoka.” Riko slowly brought the girl’s hand up to her head and whispered, so low that if the only other sound wasn’t the wagon moving, she probably would have missed it. “Thank you.”</p><p>There was a long awkward pause after they separated, Honoka going back to her map, trying to think of something. Then she had an idea. She rummaged around in her bag and took out an even older version of the map she was working on, something that she had never actually sold after making. She found a backup quill and held the two items out to Riko.</p><p>“Wanna try?”</p><p>Riko looked from the items to the ginger before jumping in surprise. “E-Eh!? I’m not a good artist, you know! I can barely draw straight lines without something to help me!”</p><p>Honoka just shrugged. “We all start somewhere, you know. Besides, this is an old map. You don’t have to worry about ruining it. I won’t be upset or anything.” She laughed and Riko slowly took the map and quill before sitting herself beside the ginger. Honoka scooted the inkwell between them. She pointed to a place on the map between the city and some hilly area. “So, there are a few outposts here now and that’s something that people want to know. Look here.” She showed the structures on her own map. “Just try your best. If you don’t do well, it’s no big deal.”</p><p>Riko looked a little panicked at first but steeled herself as she dipped the quill in the inkwell, nodding at Honoka before putting it to the parchment. And well… it was actually a lot worse than Honoka expected. The buildings she had attempted to mark had turned into a large black stain of ink on the paper. Honoka took one look before she burst out laughing.</p><p>“H-Hey, don’t laugh! I told you that I can’t do this!” Riko pouted.</p><p>“I-I’m sorry, i-it’s just…” Honoka took a deep breath to calm herself. “No offense, but I didn’t think it would be… that bad. Is this your first time drawing on parchment?”</p><p>“It’s my first time doing it since childhood.”</p><p>“Well, like I said, everybody starts somewhere. I just thought it might help take your mind off things if you drew some. Go on, you can keep going. I picked up a bit of ink while we were in town and I’ll buy some more when we get to our destination, so don’t worry about wasting it.”</p><p>Riko mumbled something about not wanting to mess up again but she still dipped the quill and got to work again. Honoka gave her a few pointers about not pressing the quill too hard and helping her to steady her hands. In the end, the map was completely ruined with blotches of ink but Riko had at least been able to draw a few straight lines.</p><p>Riko stared at it in discontent while Honoka worked on her own map. The redhead glanced over to the girl and felt herself smiling at how content Honoka always seemed when mapping. But there was something else she wanted to talk about.</p><p>“So, Honoka.”</p><p>“Hm?”</p><p>“Do you have any plans for what we’re going to do?”</p><p>“Eh?”</p><p>“I wasn’t really able to get any information before we had to leave. So, I’m not really sure what we can do except ask about the sage somewhere else. I was wondering if you had anything else in mind.”</p><p>Honoka thought for a second before taking out the piece of paper Rin had given her. Sarchen, huh? She did have some idea of what they could do but it would difficult with them being wanted. And that would depend on if that ‘plan’ of hers would even help them because they were wanted.</p><p>“Well… I do have one idea on somebody who might be able to give us a lead. But…”</p><p>“But?”</p><p>“When she finds out I’m wanted, her mood might be… not the best.”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>Taverns in the capital were always bustling with business. People from all over the country and even other countries gathered there to drink and celebrate, to have fun, to let loose after a day of hard work. And this day was no different. All kinds of people, from lower ranked nobles, to ruffians straight out of the poorest districts laughed together while sharing drinks. </p><p>But that was short-lived this evening as the doors to the tavern slammed open, silence falling over the place in an instant. Heavy footsteps sounded as the girl who was the source of the noise walked in, all eyes drawn to her. Long blue hair swept out around her waist, swaying with each confident step in her boots that looked like they belonged with a full set of steel armour. Amber eyes scanned the place, every patron shying away under the gaze. And then the whispers started.</p><p>“That’s… That’s her, right?”</p><p>“Yeah, it’s the Knight of the White Waters.”</p><p>“Knight? In that outfit?”</p><p>“Heh, she’ll kick your ass with or without armour.”</p><p>The speculation on her outfit was something the girl had long since gotten past. Instead of the armour expected of a proper knight, she instead wore a simple white dress with frills lining the bottom. It was odd and stood out in the tavern, but it was something she had started to take pride in… or tried to. A light pink still dusted her cheeks from all the looks. The only thing about her that identified her as a knight was the sword hanging at her hip in a white sheath laced with gold that hung from a belt under the dress. The girl had torn a hole in the dress to hang the sword from, not even bothering to properly make it. Luckily the hole revealed no more than it should, the belt the only thing visible through it.</p><p>“Sonoda-sama is as beautiful as ever today.”</p><p>“So it really is Sonoda Umi? I’ve never actually seen her in person, I’ve just heard the rumors…”</p><p>“Yeah. I wonder why she’s here though?”</p><p>Umi stormed up to the bar, a couple patrons scrambling from their seats at it as she approached. She looked directly into the eyes of the man managing the bar and he shrunk under that gaze.</p><p>“Your notification board. Where is it?” Her voice was stern, leaving no room for any talk besides what she wanted to know. The man quickly pointed out the board on the opposite side of the bar and Umi turned that way, the entire bar shifting in their seats.</p><p>She moved across the tavern with purposeful steps, steps that sounded much louder in the silence devoid of even whispers now. The bluenette stopped in front of the board and stared at it. There were plenty of posters for jobs and whatnot but that wasn’t what she was there for. She directed her eyes to the part of the board showing wanted criminals. And one poster in particular caught her eyes, the exact poster she had heard about and just had to confirm for herself.</p><p>One of the faces she didn’t recognize, but the reward for her was massive, easily over twenty times the amount of the second highest paying job or criminal on the board. A man could become rich if he turned that girl in. But the other girl… Umi recognized. She recognized her too well. A hand went to her sword and she gritted her teeth. She wanted it to be wrong. She prayed to every god that she didn’t believe in for it to be wrong and she let her eyes drift down to the name.</p><p>
  <b>Kousaka Honoka.</b>
</p><p>Anger flared in Umi’s eyes and she drew her sword, swinging it just once and obliterating the board. There were a few screams of panic, but nobody dared run or make any move besides flinching. After a few deep breaths, she stuck her sword back in the sheath and turned to the bartender once again. She walked over, fished out enough coins for one hundred of those boards and dropped them on the bar in front of him.<br/>
“My apologies.” She bowed and swept her dress out as she made her way back through the tavern and out the doors.</p><p>Silence persisted for a bit until everybody was sure she wouldn’t come back.</p><p>“Sonoda-sama is even scarier than the rumors say…”</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>“And then she’ll slice me to pieces!” Honoka finished her own version of what she thought would happen when Umi found out about her being wanted, which may have involved some world-ending events. Riko just blinked at the obviously excessive story.</p><p>“Honoka… I don’t thi―”</p><p>“We’re here, ladies!” The wagon came to a stop and they both peeked back at the driver who gave them a thumbs up.</p><p>Honoka quickly packed all her stuff up and the two hopped out, going around to the front. “Thank you for bringing us here. We know it put you at risk to, so…”</p><p>The driver just laughed. “It’s nothing. Like I said before, boss’s orders. If I was afraid of something like this, the boss would’ve fired me a long time ago. Anyways…” He glanced around. He had pulled up a few dozen meters from the actual gate that led into town but there were still others passing them. He leaned down and lowered his voice. “The boss is running some… special interference for you two. You aren’t wanted here yet. Get what you need here, supplies, information, whatever, and get the hell out. She can’t keep the word about you two from spreading here forever. Two days. Two days max and then you two need to be out of here.”</p><p>Honoka nodded, grateful for the information. She would have to thank Rin again the next time she saw her. The driver returned the nod and turned his wagon around, riding back off in the direction they came from. Honoka looked toward Riko who nodded and the two moved off towards the gate. Guards were checking wagons for who knows what but there was separate line thankfully for people without wagons.</p><p>“Hold it, ladies.” A man with a raspy voice stopped them. “Just routine. Where are you two coming from?”</p><p>Honoka was a little hesitant to tell the truth but if word of them hadn’t spread there yet then there was probably no harm in it. “Quensaille.”</p><p>He nodded. “And your business here?”</p><p>“I’m a traveling cartographer.” She nodded to Riko. “And she’s training under me right now. I recently made a friend here who said they’d give me a deal on printing my maps so I’m here to give them my originals.” She got Riko to pull out her Cerstain River map and the man took a good look at it.</p><p>“Oh, you’re Kousaka Honoka? Ahaha! It’s a pleasure to meet you! I’ve bought your maps when I’ve travelled in the last year. Never thought I’d actually get the chance to meet you.”</p><p>“O-Oh, you’re flattering me.” Honoka sheepishly rubbed the back of her head and gave a playful laugh.</p><p>“Ah, don’t let me hold you up then. Go right ahead.” Honoka gave him a nod and continued through the gate with Riko at her side.</p><p>The town was lively, bustling with people roaming stalls or men carrying heavy sacks to and fro. That liveliness was welcome with all the worry that had built up in the ginger and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Even if it was just for a couple of days, they would be able to relax here. Considering their current situation, that was more than she could possibly ask for.</p><p>“Alright, Riko, let’s find an i―”</p><p>“Hm? What is this? Look at what walked right into my territory.” Honoka hadn’t noticed at first, but all the sound around them had turned to whispers, many people clearing away from them. No, not from them. From her. Ash-grey hair, a smile that froze Honoka’s blood, amber eyes that screamed that she knew much more than she should.</p><p>“Who…?” Honoka stuck an arm out in front of Riko as if that would help guard her. Was this going to turn into a fight? She had little doubt in her mind that she would lose if that was the case. For some reason… she could tell this girl was strong. Her oppressive aura seemed to make everybody around shrink back but the ginger managed to stand tall in face of it.</p><p>“Welcome to Lycota. Come, my darling.” The girl reached a hand out and Honoka’s eyes widened as that same translucent chain appeared in her hand from seemingly nowhere, the chain that she was now all-too familiar with. “Let’s play just a bit. Be gentle, alright~?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The Fourth Relic</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I still won't be updating this regularly, sorry. I was just gonna ditch it, but I had so many ideas left so I figured I would try to get a chapter out every now and then.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Honoka could only manage a staring contest with the girl. What else was she supposed to do? This girl had a Relic and, if the confidence leaking off her was any indication, she knew how to wield it one thousand times better than the ginger. Plus, she was using it in such a public place! That could only mean that she had been given the Relic by the kingdom or they at least knew about and accepted her being in the country despite possessing one. Either way, it meant bad news for her. There was no way she could reveal the fact that Riko was a Relic in front of so many people. They would have to skip town immediately. That is, if they didn’t lose their lives to this girl.</p><p>“Hm? No response?” The girl tightened her grip on the chain and took a step forward, the ginger matching her with a step back. “Are you afraid? Is Kotori-chan that scary~? Come, I just want to play a bit~” That smile said otherwise. Honoka wouldn’t be surprised if her idea of playing was cutting every part of the ginger’s body off.</p><p>“Sorry, but we’re kind of in a hurry.” She finally managed to say. “Maybe some other time?”</p><p>“Oh no. That won’t do. I’m really in the mood to play right now~” Another step forward but Honoka held her ground this time. “Come on. Show it to me… her true form.”</p><p>She really did know. This girl knew about Riko’s Relic. Honoka briefly debated running away, but if this girl had a Relic there was no way she would even make it out of the town before she died. Fighting was an option but… that would likely lead to their deaths as well.</p><p>“Ah, sorry~. You must be nervous to show so many people, right? Don’t worry.” She held her hand with the chain in the air. “Oh world, full of woes. We must say farewell for now.”</p><p>In that instant, everything froze. All sound, the people around them, the air itself. Everything just… stopped. Honoka’s eyes drifted over the townspeople, frozen in the midst of actions, a falling apple hanging in mid-air. Then her eyes drifted back to the mysterious girl who called herself Kotori. “You… What is this?”</p><p>“Hm~? Oh! Could it be you truly don’t know me? Even though you have a Relic?” At the mention of her, Honoka turned to check on Riko but the girl still seemed able to move. When she turned back, Kotori was even closer. “Eheh. Sorry, just kidding~ I already knew that. There’s no way you would know, right? After all, you only just began wielding this Relic. How would you? You’re Kousaka Honoka, right? And Sakurauchi Riko.”</p><p>“I-Isn’t it polite to introduce yourself first?” Honoka silently cursed at her stumbling but if Kotori noticed she didn’t show it.</p><p>“Ahaha! Right! You’re absolutely right!” She gave too deep of a bow and came up with a large smile. “My name is Minami Kotori, wielder of the Fourth Relic. Perhaps that rings some bells?”</p><p>Honoka was ready to say that she had, in fact, never heard of the girl, but something in the back of her head nagged at her. Fourth Relic? Had she heard that somewhere before? A twitch from behind her made her look back at Riko and the fear in the redhead’s eyes was obvious. “Riko…” The redhead jumped a bit before meeting eyes with her. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>Riko turned her eyes back on the girl before slowly parting shaking lips to speak. “D-Do you… not know that name?” Honoka shook her head. “I know it… They used to mention it a lot… in Coulchen. The Fourth Relic… The Devouring Blade…”</p><p>“Devouring… Blade?”</p><p>“A Relic… that devoured her owner… We have to get out of here, Honoka. She’s like a walking natural dis―!” Riko’s words turned into something between a gasp and cough as blood flew from her mouth, streaking over Honoka’s face. “Ho… no…”</p><p>Honoka blinked and her mind barely registered that Kotori had appeared behind them. She tore her hand from Riko’s chest and let the redhead’s body fall to the ground with a dull thud. “Now, that’s one taken care of. What do you say now, Honoka-chan? Will you play with me?”</p><p>Everything felt like a blur in that moment. There were so many things for her mind to process that Honoka couldn’t possibly sort them all out. This girl had just attacked them, attacked Riko. And Riko was… her eyes shifted downward to the lifeless body lying in front of her. Riko was… dead?</p><p>
  <i>Riko… No… No!</i>
</p><p>A translucent chain shot into the air from the Riko’s body, swirling around, reaching out for Honoka, wrapping tightly around her wrist. In a split second, she manifested Prologue, anger sweeping away any other emotions at that moment. Kotori kept a calm smile on her face as she watched Honoka swing the large blade at her. But it never reached her. Once again, it happened so quickly that Honoka’s brain had to take a few seconds to catch up. Her arm was gone, along with Prologue, thrown off to the side.<br/>
<br/>
“AHHHH!” Honoka grabbed at her arm, or what was left of it. Blood spurted from the missing limb, covering her hand and the girl in front of her. The pain was so great it drove Honoka to her knees, tears welling up and pouring down her face. She tried to get words out, but her mind couldn’t focus on anything but the pain. Her vision wavered, her breaths only coming as short gasps between screams.</p><p>“Now, now…” Kotori grabbed her chin and forced the ginger to look up at her. “Ah, that look of pain… It suits you so well, Honoka-chan~ Oh? Are you feeling faint? You’re swaying. Here, I’ll wake you up~” Kotori grabbed the ginger’s shirt, just below her neck, her fingernails digging in deeply. That was enough to elicit more screams, but the worst came when she dragged her hand down, tearing deep gashes all the way down her chest. Blood poured from the wounds, the sickeningly warm feeling contrasting with the cold that ran through Honoka’s insides.</p><p>Kotori ran a hand along her stomach, slowly, a light giggle escaping her lips. But then it <i>entered</i> her, tearing through her stomach, digging into her body, sending shockwaves of nausea through her as fingers squirmed their way inside her. Honoka almost immediately puked at the intrusion, but along with the expelled liquid came blood. She couldn’t even find it in her to scream. She could only lower her eyes to watch the blood pouring from her stomach. “Ah, you’re so warm~ Let’s see what we can find~” Kotori suddenly tore her hand out and, with it, a chunk of <i>something</i>. “Ahaha! It came out so easily! I wonder what it’s part of! Your stomach? Something else?”</p><p>This time she did scream, much louder than before, so loud that it hurt but that pain was basically null in the face of the pain from her stomach. Blood pooled on the ground beneath her and she felt all strength leave her body. Her vision suddenly turned as she fell over, black dots threatening to fill her vision entirely. She could make out Kotori squatting next to her, dropping the chunk of flesh in front of her. Kotori held up her bloody hand and took a long slow lick of the blood.</p><p>“You even taste good, Honoka-chan~ How amazing! It’s really a shame that it all had to end here just because you had bad timing, right? Don’t worry, I’m sure Prologue’s next owner will take great care of it~ Oh? You’re still conscious? Can you hear me~? Hello~? Earth to Honoka-chan!”</p><p>In that moment, with Kotori’s hand reaching out for her once again, she finally felt a sense of clarity, a moment devoid of pain.</p><p>
  <i>Is this how it’s going to end? I couldn’t… protect her. I never even got the chance to fight for her. And why? Because this girl decided on a whim to kill us? Screw that! I can’t… I can’t let it end like this! I won’t! Can’t you help, Prologue!? She’s going to die if we don’t help her! She… She… She’s dead. Because of me. What kind of idiot am I? I have no training, I’m not a swordsman. I’m just a cartographer. Why did I think I could protect Riko? I could have tried to go straight for Umi. Or even tried to get her to stay with Tatsuya for a while. Why…? I’m sorry…</i> Kotori was trying to speak to her, but she was long beyond hearing or even feeling. The black dots slowly overtook her vision.<i> I’m sorry… Riko…</i>
</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>
  <i>Cold… Dark… Am I dead…? Huh. I always thought that the whole cold and dark think was just something out of books. Well, at least I’ll get to find out if there is an Underworld or something. I wonder if I was good enough to get in some god’s heaven. I wonder… if I’ll get to see Riko again. It hurts. Even in death, my chest hurts thinking about her… about how beautiful, how kind, how… how I let her die. Come on, at least you might see her again now. Maybe I’ll get reincarnated and meet her again. Ha… why…? Why do I feel like crying? Why do I miss a girl that I’ve only known for days so much? Riko… I want to see you again…</i>
</p><p>
  <b>Then wake up!</b>
</p><p>-</p><p>-</p><p>“Huh? Can you… repeat that?”</p><p>“Yes. I am requesting a leave. I do not know how long I will be gone but this is an important matter. At the very least, I will not be in the capital for quite a while.” Umi stared down the Commander, an older man with graying hair, matching his intense stare.<br/><br/>
“Sonoda, you do realize your position, correct? Especially in times like these, we can’t just have you wandering off. What about the Princess?”</p><p>Umi nodded. “Of course, I don’t intend to leave my duties here unfulfilled. I have already discussed and came to an agreement with Hiroko to take my place. As he is one who I have trained with more than not, I trust the Princess’s life in his hands. You will not find a better warrior than him.”</p><p>The Commander slammed his hand on the desk. “We have one right here! Please, just tell me, Sonoda, what could be so important that you… that you of all people would leave your sworn duty?”</p><p>Umi shifted her eyes away just briefly, but quickly matched his stare with renewed determination. “There are some things in this world I must protect at all costs. I failed once in the past and I will not let that happen again. With all due respect Commander, if this request is not granted, I will permanently resign from the Royal Army.”</p><p>“Wha…? Do you even realize what you’re saying? With the information you know, it’s not like we could just allow you to walk freely!”</p><p>“Then I shall stand against the entire kingdom if need be.”</p><p>A moment of tense silence ensued, the Commander waiting as if expecting Umi to back down on that claim, but she stood her ground and he finally sighed. “Look, we can’t allow an indefinite absence. At the least, you can see why that would be a problem, right? I’ll be willing to give you some time off since you claim it’s that important, but we’ll have to come to a compromise on that.”</p><p>Umi nodded, it made sense after all. “One month. That should more than suffice. At least, I will know what I need to. Officially, I will say that I will return after that month is over, but I will be honest with you, Commander. If I determine that, in order to protect that which I must, a month is not enough, then I will take as much time as I need. But I will try my utmost to have things sorted by then.”</p><p>The older man rubbed his temples but nodded. If it was anybody else, he would have their heads at that response, but he was in no real position to argue with this particular person. “Fine. I’ll take you on your word then. Have this sorted in one month. You will explain yourself to the Princess. She has a right to know and I’m quite sure you’re more willing to speak with her than I on your private matters.”</p><p>“Very well. I’ll be leaving tomorrow so if you could have everything sorted out by then, I would appreciate it greatly.” She gave a deep bow and moved to the door. “I’ll go inform the Princess of my impending absence.”</p><p>As soon as the door slammed, the Commander let out a long sigh, but couldn’t help but smile. “Really, what are we going to do with you, Sonoda?”</p><p>Umi walked quickly through the castle’s corridors, guards clearing the way for her as she approached. Too many thoughts and worries swirled around in her head that she wasn’t paying attention to how she was walking. In a sense though, intimidating people was part of the job description anyways. Before she could even begin to sort those thoughts, she found herself standing in front of a large set of doors flanked on both sides by a guard. She looked between them and they both nodded.</p><p>She took a deep breath and knocked twice. “Come in!” Umi sighed and opened one door, taking a quick step in before shutting it. Despite literally being a room for royalty, it looked nothing like it. Besides the desk, dresser, and excessively large bed, the room was rather empty. Well, save for the mess that the Princess always seemed to make, consisting of clothes, papers, and books scattered all around the floor. “Ah, Umi-chan! Great timing, can you bring me that book next to your foot?”</p><p>Umi’s eyes scanned the room and landed on the lone girl sitting at the desk, her short red hair pulled into small twintails. Umi couldn’t help but smile as she swiped up the book and walked over. “What are you working on, Ruby-sama?”</p><p>Ruby looked up at her with practically glowing eyes. “Remember those runes I talked about the other day? I think I’m finally close to deconstructing them!” She smiled brightly but her eyes quickly widened in realization and she coughed, turning back to the spread of papers. “S-Sorry, I’m just excited.”</p><p>“It is nothing to apologize for. I’m glad that you’re making progress on your work.”</p><p>“Mm! You want to help?”</p><p>That reminded Umi of why she was there in the first place. “I would love to, but that is not why I am here today.” She knelt down next to the chair. “I will be taking a leave of absence for a while, Ruby-sama. I am not sure how long yet, but I will not be able to see you during this time.”</p><p>“… Eh?” Ruby blinked once. Twice. Umi flinched. “You’re… leaving…?”</p><p>“It is just temporary, I assure you. I have some personal matters to attend to. Don’t worry, even if I’m not here, I’ll have Hiroko atten―!”</p><p>“No!” Her sudden yell had Umi flinch again. “Why!? Why do you have to leave!? I don’t want… I don’t want to be alone!”</p><p>“L-Like I said, Hiroko will…”</p><p>Ruby shook her head and slid off the chair, wrapping her arms around Umi. “I don’t want him! I want to be with you, Umi-chan! I can’t… I won’t be able to speak up… I-I’ll just stutter and cry… I need you…”</p><p>Sighing, Umi ran her hand through Ruby’s hair. This was exactly what she feared might happen. Ruby had never really been without her so it was going to be difficult. Even so…</p><p>“Even so, I have to go, Ruby-sama. Listen.” Umi pulled her out to arms length. “I’ll be back, alright? It’s just one month. I need you to be strong while I’m gone. For me, alright? There won’t go a night by where I do not think of you. When everything is done, I’ll come back here and I promise I’ll make all the time in the world for you. Alright?”</p><p>Ruby sniffled but nodded. “M-Mm. Y-You better come back though.”</p><p>“Good. I’ll be leaving tonight so I’ll ask your father if I can join you for dinner before I leave, alright?” Ruby smiled and that and Umi stood, bringing the younger girl up with her. “Alright. I have to go pack some things away but I’ll see you in a few hours.”<br/>
She walked towards the door but paused when Ruby’s voice reached out again. “Um…”</p><p>“Yes, Ruby-sama?”</p><p>“If… If you see Onee-chan while you’re out there, tell her I want to see her again.”</p><p>Somehow, Umi managed to not visibly flinch at the remark, but avoided eye contact, nodding slowly. “I… I will keep that in mind.”</p><p>With that, she exited, quietly closing the large door behind her. She shook Ruby’s words away. There was too much for her to worry about right now. She really didn’t need something else to think about.</p><p>“I’m coming, Honoka.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So? Not terrible at the least, right? This is my first story on ao3 but I've written a decent amount of fics. I hope you all enjoy this one though, some odd pairings to boot.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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